


Life After Death

by Alphinss



Category: Bleach, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Crossover, Dark Past, Gen, Memory Loss, Young Harry, Zanpakutou
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-16
Updated: 2018-03-16
Packaged: 2018-09-24 23:32:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 53,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9791954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alphinss/pseuds/Alphinss
Summary: A little boy with black hair and sparkling green eyes wakes up with no memories in a new and scary world. How will he survive somewhere so different? How long till the past he has forgotten will catch up with him? Will betrayal follow him even where the living cannot?





	1. Chapter 1

A flash of green, a yelled curse, darkness, fear. A young boy’s eyes suddenly flicked open. His mind was a blur and his thoughts muddled as he sat up and looked around. Trees filled his vision, his head spun and so did the trees as he attempted to stand. His hand found steadiness on a tree his vision slowly stabilising. Trees, a lake, moss covered rocks, birds twittering in the trees. A small hare hopped across the clearing that the boy found himself in. The boy attempted to clear his thoughts, to comprehend where he was and how he had got here. Nothing. He remembered nothing. Thinking again he tried to remember anything at all. The boy knew that there were important things and important people that he needed to remember and yet there seemed nothing forthcoming. The boy became worried and scared, a tear gently making its way down his face and then another and another. Soon the young boy was sitting on the floor, his hands over his face as uncontrollable sobs wracked his body.

‘Now, now, little one’ a male voice spoke out, deep and soothing. The boy jumped at the voice that seemed to be coming from inside his head. ‘There’s no need to cry.’ The boy was surprisingly calmed by the voice even though he had no explanation as to where it was coming from. The tears falling from the boy’s eyes ceased as he thought about how to respond to the voice.

“Who…Who are you?” the boy’s voice filled the quite clearing as he whispered the question. For some reason the voice seemed higher pitched and younger than what he thought it should be. He had no memory of speaking differently and yet his voice just seemed to sound wrong. As he thought about the peculiar nature of these thoughts and where they had come from the voice inside his head began to speak again.

‘You are not ready to know my name, little one.’ the voice said, deep and rumbling ‘All you need to know is that I am a friend and that I am here to help you. I wish you no harm.’ the voice sounded kind and sincere. It was a voice that the boy seemed to automatically trust. ‘Now little one, why don’t you pick yourself up and go get a drink from that lake over there. You seem to need it.’ The little boy did as guided. He pushed his body up, it seemed smaller than it ought to be. His wobbly legs led him towards the pool of crystal clear water. He knelt down before it and saw a face staring back at him. A young boy, of around six, with shaggy black hair and sparkling green eyes stared back at him. The image was broken as as the boy scooped water into his hands swallowing gulps in quick succession. As the boy finished his drinking the voice spoke to him again.

‘Now that you have quenched your thirst I feel that you need a name, don’t you?’ the voice was filled with humour as it spoke, though it was not mocking. The boy felt himself nodding in response to the voice. If he did not have a name how could he hope to create an identity in this world. He needed a purpose and a name was a good point to start. ‘I think that we should call you Koji. It means little one and I think it suits you perfectly’ the voice finished and a laugh filled Koji’s head, showing the humour that the voice found in his own suggestion. The boy nodded, accepting the name that the voice suggested and the newly dubbed Koji stood up and explored the new land that he had found himself in.

* * *

It had been a week since Koji had arrived in the forest and he was still trying to find out about this new world. Currently he found himself in a tree as he watched a group of men walking through the forest. The men were dressed in raged clothes, knives and swords filling their hands. They were not the first group that Koji had seen making their way through the forest. However they seemed to be the most heavily armed. Koji sat munching on some berries that the friendly voice had told him were edible and they filled the hunger that he had been suppressing for the last few hours. Koji always seemed to be hungry, never satisfied with the small amount of food that he could find for himself. As the armed group made their way through the forest, a small fight broke out between two of the members of the group. The two started to shout at each other, pushing and shoving, the violence of the actions becoming more and more extreme as the seconds ticked by. The taller of the two men pulled out a knife and Koji watched as he plunged said dagger directly into the smaller man’s chest. The man fell to the ground, blood spilling from the wound and then from his mouth as he coughed. The group then continued on their way, leaving the body of the man on the forest floor, not caring for his body enough to bury it before they moved on.

Koji waited and waited, each minute feeling like an age as he tried to comprehend what it was that he had just witnessed. He found himself frozen in place and his mind began to shut down. He tried to understand how life could just be ended so quickly and violently. He closed his eyes and tried to control the swirling thoughts that were circling around in his head. Koji suddenly found himself in a clearing of forest, but this one was far different from the one that he knew that he was sitting in. The ground was covered in a thick layer of leaves, oranges, browns and reds. The trees were tall and looming, covered in the same coloured leaves. The sun was high in the sky but not scorchingly hot. A gentle breeze rushed through the forest, the leaves rustling and a few falling from their branches. In the centre of the clearing stood a man. His hair was the same colour as the leaves on the floor, a mixture of reds, oranges and browns that flowed down his back in waves. He wore a pair of black trousers, tight and fitting him like a second skin. He also wore a pair of black combat boots that looked as though they could crush your skull with a single step. The outfit was completed with an open black robe that reached the man’s thighs. The open robe revealed the man’s muscled chest. The man’s blue eyes sparkled as he looked at Koji.

“Well hello Koji. It’s nice to finally meet you in person the man said grinning.’ Koji’s jaw dropped as he recognised the voice as that of the friendly stranger that talked to him in his head. The two had been talking more and more with each passing day as the man helped Koji understand the new world that he was in. Koji looked on in awe at the man before him. He seemed to radiate power from every atom of his being. His tall, muscled stature looming over Koji’s small and delicate one. ‘Not that I wouldn't love to continue our conversation but you need to leave’ the man said, the smile dropping from his face as he became much more serious. He placed his large hand on Koji’s head, ruffling his hair gently as he spoke.

‘There are people coming to investigate the man you just witnessed the death of. These people are ones that will notice you sitting in this tree. I need you to climb down and follow the path that you found two days ago. It will lead you away from here and away from the danger that approaches.’ With that the man knelt down in front of Koji and placed his hands on the boy’s shoulders. He brought his lips to the boy’s ears and whispered urgently ‘now go!’

Koji’s eyes snapped open and he climbed down the tree as quickly as he could. Koji’s eyes quickly glanced at the dead man lying on his back, his eyes glassy and unmoving. Koji made a rash decision, he ran over to the man and pulled, with a large amount of struggling, the dagger from his chest. Blood splattered from the wound and Koji wiped the congealed blood on the knife onto the tattered trousers of the dead man. He then tucked the dagger into the pocket of the raggedy trousers that he had been dressed in when he had woken up in this place. Koji then sprinted towards the path that his friend had talked about. He ran along the path, his little legs pumping as fast as they could. He kept running and running until he could run no more.

As Koji stopped and looked around he noticed that he had reached the edge of the forest. The trees had thinned and there seemed to be a town of sorts further down the path. Koji, unsure of what action to take next sat on a tree stump and managed to bring his breathing under his control again. He then whispered aloud asking the only possible listener what he should do next. His friend remained silent, leaving the decision up to himself. Koji spent several minutes making a decision. As the sun began to set in the sky he realised that going into an unknown location at night was not a good idea. Koji therefore made his way , several meters, back into the forest before he claimed up a tall enough tree and settling down for the night. Koji decided that he would explore the town during the day tomorrow. He could always return to the forest if the place was unsafe.

* * *

The next morning Koji awoke to light streaming through the leaves of the trees and he readied himself for a new day in this unknown world. He climbed down the tree and grabbed a few of the berries from a nearby bush to temporarily sate his hunger. It was not filling enough but it subdued the hunger pangs for a time. Koji made his way down the path that led towards the town, clutching the dagger in his pocket, tightly. He was ready to use it at a moments notice. Due to the early hour of the day Koji saw very few people in the town. He walked around the streets seeing dilapidated houses in urgent need of disrepair lining the streets. He also saw people dressed in rags similar to his own. Koji waved to a child around his age as the child played with a beaten up, old ball. The boy kicked the ball to Koji, a grin lighting up his dirty face. Koji kicked it bask and the two played a small game. As time passed several more children joined in the game and Koji, for a time, forgot about the strange world he was in and simply enjoyed his time playing.

However the peace was ended as one small girl kicked the ball too hard causing it to smash one of the only remaining intact widows on the street. The glass crystals clattered as they fell to the floor. One of the children yelled for them all to run at the top of their lungs. Koji, not knowing what else to do followed the child’s advice and sprinted away from the scene of the crime. He ran down an alley and away from the rest of the children. His feet guiding the way with no input from his brain. Koji continued to run util he reached a dead end. He sat down and breathed deeply trying to make up for the lack of oxygen. The thought crossed his mind that if he would be running this much on a regular basis that he really needed to become a little more fit.

As Koji finally caught his breath and stood up to find his way back to the main street he was tackled to the ground by a much bigger man. Said man had oily, dirty hair, rotted teeth and breath bad enough to knock someone out. He sat atop of Koji and demanded that he hand over any money that he had. Koji was dumbfounded, he had nothing except the dagger and a few berries in his pocket. He attempted to stutter out that he did have anything but the man didn't let him. He simply shouted again that Koji was to give him all his money.

‘Little one, this man is insane and he will not let you go without money. You need to get rid of him.’ Koji agreed with his friend. This man was going to kill him unless Koji managed to do it first. He attempted to reach for the dagger but his left hand was trapped under the man’s knee and so, the dagger being in his left pocket, was unreachable. Koji began to panic as he realised that he had no way out. This man was going to kill him and there was nothing that he could do about it.

‘Little one, I need you to calm down.’ the voice said soothingly. ‘I need you to breath for me, in and out, in and out. There you go.’ Koji managed to calm down slightly even as the weight from the man on his chest became almost unbearable and the man’s demands became more unreasonable. ‘Now Koji you need to focus. I want you to imagine a great power building up in your right hand. Now let it build and build but don’t let it go just yet. There you go, thats it’ the voice said reassuringly. ‘Now bring that hand to this piece of scum’s chest’ Koji did as he was told and brought his hand to where he though the man’s heart should be. ‘Now. Let go Koji’ and Koji did. The power burst from his hand in a flash of orange light and the man was thrown backwards off Koji and part way down the alley. Koji lay panting on the ground. It felt as though all his energy had been sapped from him. His eyes felt heavy ad all he wanted to do was sleep.

Meanwhile in another part of the dilapidated area that was district 80 two high ranking Shinigami looked at each other in shock. Shinji Hirako and Kisuke Urahara. The two had been attempting to discuss the peculiarities that had been occurring within the soul society in the past few years without there being any chance of any other Shinigami overhearing their conversation hence their rendezvous in the outer district. Therefore when they felt a strong spiritual pressure fill the air the two became unnerved. Their topic of conversation was a dangerous one. Therefore when they felt the presence of another Shinigami and a strong one at that they flash stepped as fast as they could towards the source of the power.

As the two of them reached the alleyway they were shocked to see the collapsed form of a small boy and a dead man. The boy was pale, dirty and almost naked except for a pair of raged, ripped trousers. As the pair approached the small figure they noticed that they could feel the spiritual power coming off the boy in waves. Shinji walked closer towards the small boy and picked him up. He cradled the small boy to his chest before flash stepping away. He needed to get the boy to Unahana as quickly as possible. 


	2. Chapter 2

Koji woke up slowly, his eyes were still closed as he was unwilling to relinquish the comfort he was feeling. He felt more warm and relaxed then he could ever remember feeling. There was no rough bark, no itchy grass and no tweeting birds. Instead he felt like he was in a cocoon of comfort. All the aches and pains from living rough for the past week were gone. Koji’s brain was still in a sleepy daze as he lazily went over these new facts. They seemed unimportant. Koji’s eyes fluttered open and yet he didn't find himself in a new place. He instead found himself in his familiar autumn forest, his friend standing at the centre with a small smile on his face.

‘Koji’ the man greeted. A small smile on his face ‘I think that its time you learned how to defend yourself. Your dagger has been taken and you are defenceless in a new place.’ With that two swords appeared in the man’s hands. He threw one of the swords to Koji. With reflexes Koji didn't know he had he caught it in his hand. It was heavy and his small arm dropped with the weight of it, the sword thudding to the forest floor. ‘Well that is a bad start Koji.’ the man said with a smirk on his face. ‘Come now, I know you can do better than that.’ Koji brought both hands to the hilt of the sword and hefted it upwards, mirroring the state that his friend held before him. It was heavy but he was stubborn enough to kept it held in the right position even as his arms quivered with the weight.

‘Well done Koji, that’s it. Now I want you to attack me.’ Koji looked into the man’s eyes in shock. Is that really what he wanted? He didn't understand, he thought they were friends. The man chuckled as he looked at the distraught boy before him. ‘Nothing like that Koji. It’s merely to train you so that you can defend yourself. You cant hurt me.’ the man said, an amused smile on his face. ‘Come now Koji. Attack!’ the man finished with a shout. Koji tightly gripped the sword and lunged for the man before him. The man easily sidestepped before yelling ‘and again Koji.’ Koji turned and tried again, more quickly this time. Their swords clashed for a few moments before Koji was thrown to the floor, the leaves blowing up in a plume.

Koji made several more lunges, each ending in a similar way. It took him several more after that to realise that there was no possible way that he could defeat the man before him using brute force. He was just too physically powerful. Therefore as Koji was kneeling on the forest floor, his breathing heavy, he picked up a handful of leaves. He hefted the sword up with his other hand and lunged forward. Koji threw the leaves into the man’s face and then jabbed the sword forward. He made a cut on man’s shoulder. Blood trickled from the wound. Koji gasped and dropped his sword to the floor as he saw the blood. He looked at the man before him, his eyes filling with tears as he realised that he had hurt his one and only friend in the world. Before Koji could stop himself he flung himself at the man, his small arms wrapping around the man’s middle as he muttered over and over again that he was sorry.

The man brought his hand down to the boy’s head and ruffled his midnight black locks with a gentle hand. He then placed said hand on the boy’s shoulder and pushed him away softly, breaking the hug. The man dropped the sword to the floor and then knelt before the boy. Taking Koji’s chin in his hand their eyes met. The man’s eyes were filled with pride as he forced the boy’s gaze to his.

‘Koji, you have not harmed me. The wound is already gone.’ Koji glanced at the man’s shoulder to see that what he had said rang true. There was nothing but a rip in the man’s coat giving any indication that he had been hurt at all. Koji then turned his attention back to the man as he began to speak again. ‘Well done little one, you managed to wound a master swords man in your first sparring session. I may have been going easy on you and yet you used your mind and your size in your favour. I am proud of you and you are worth of being my master.’ Koji raised his eyebrow at the man’s use of the word master. He did not understand what the man meant by that. However he did not wish to interrupt the man, instead he listened as the man continued. ‘My name is Tatsuo, little one and I am your sword. I will protect you and help you until the day you die.’ With that Tatsuo stood. His eyes still joined with Koji’s as he did so. He then walked back to the centre of the clearing and gave a bright and joy filled smile to Koji.

* * *

Koji’s eyes flickered open as he came out of his inner world. He found himself alone in a bed, white walls surrounded him and the sheets on the bed were a pleasant pink. Koji found himself wondering why they were not white but ignored the thought as it had no reason to be there. Koji was confused and a little scared at his new predicament. How had he possibly got here?

“Tatsuo are you there?” he called out gently He needed the reassurance that his only friend would still stay with him through whatever he was to face.

‘I’m here little one’ the voice replied. ‘I’ll always be here, even when you ca’t see me.’ Koji smiled at the thought that he would always have Tatsuo as a friend no matter where he was or how desperate he felt, the man would always be there for him.

“Thank you Tatsuo. You are the most amazing person ever” Koji said, his voice filled with sincerity and a bright smile on his face.

Unbeknownst to Koji he was not in fact alone. In a small room adjoining the one that Koji found himself in were two Shinigami. The two had been sent there by their Captains’ command. Hiyori Sarugaki, Lieutenant of the 12th division and Momo Hinamori 4th seat of the 5th division were situated there. The two thought that it was some sort of prank being pulled by their Captains as it was well know that the two of them hated each other. They had been told to listen to the sleeping boy in the next room but not to let him know they were there. They were to let their Captains know when he awoke and watch him until they could get there. They were also to call Unahana if anything seemed to be wrong with the boy or if he needed anything.

The pair had been repressing their spiritual pressure and attempting not to fight with each other, as the boy would be able to hear them through the wall, for the past three hours. The two had been in a glaring match when they heard a creaking of bed springs. The two instantly focused all their attention onto what what was going on in the room. They heard a young voice call out for a person named Tatsuo. They both looked at each other in slight confusion. There was no-one by that name that they knew of. However, what confused them more was that the boy seemed to be having a conversation. There was no-one in the room other than him and yet the boy seemed to be talking to someone. It seemed impossible for the boy to be in contact with his Zanpakto at such a young age so the only conclusion seemed to be that the boy was crazy.

Momo jumped up from her seat and quietly ran out of the room to contact the two Captains about the new information. The boy was awake and talking to himself. The boy must be important if there were two Captains worried about him. Momo wondered what the boy had done to gain such concern. There seemed something more going on then she knew about, yet she need not question the word of her Captain. She then went back to the room and back to Hiyori and her annoying nature. As she entered she heard the voices of the boy and that of Unahana. The woman was asking to examine the young man, demanding that he sit back on the bed.

Koji was in the room, looking at the woman with suspicion in his eyes. She had entered several minutes ago and Koji did not trust her in the slightest. He didn't know who the woman was and didn't want her doing anything to him that he didn't understand. Koji scowled at the woman’s insistence, she seemed to not want to take no for an answer. The two were in a standoff, both glaring at each other, neither willing to stand down. When the seconds had turned into minutes Unahana decided that enough was enough. She was not willing to have her medical procedures inhibited by a small child.

With a raising of her two fingers and a whispered incarnation she used Kido to bind the boy’s body. She caught the boy as he began to topple over. She picked him up easily and placed him on the bed. She then started to examine some of the wounds that were marring the boy’s body. However before she could check how the first couple were healing the boy’s arm began to twitch. Unahana raised her eyebrow at the movement but continued her examination. The next few wounds were checked but no more as suddenly an arm swung at Unahana. She leapt back, her reflexes saving her from a fist to the face. She looked at the little boy before her in shock as he attempted to sit up. She was shocked as the boy broke through her Kido. Even though the Kido was but a weak one it took a strong individual to break through the Kido of a Captain.

In the shock of the moment Unahana failed to notice as the boy ran towards the exit. He slid open the door and crashed into the hard chest of a man. Koji caused the man to topple backwards and fall onto the other man behind him, ending up in a pile of limbs. Unahana, having snapped out of her shock, bustled over and plucked Koji from the pile, placing him back on the bed.

“Now you stay there. You've caused enough trouble as it is.” the Captain growled out. Koji, hearing the sharp tone of the woman, wisely remained seated on the bed. He brought his legs to his chest and watched the scene unfolding before him.

“Shinji, Kisuke, lovely to see you. Now get off the floor before I drag you up” she threatened. The two dazed Captains stood up hearing the harsh tone and tried to shake off their confusion. They looked at each other before looking back to Unahana and then back to each other. It took them several seconds to understand how they had both so rapidly fallen to the floor. They then, simultaneously, seemed to notice the small boy peering at them through his fringe. A grin split both their faces as they released what their subordinates had told them was true. The boy was finally awake.

The pair walked towards the boy on the bed. Koji watched as the men approached. Tatsuo was warning Koji that the two men in front of him were powerful and dangerous. Koji needed to ensure that he did not get on the wrong side of them. Therefore as the two men approached Koji sunk backwards, pushing himself further into the headboard. He had heeded Tatsuo’s warning and was fearful of what the people may do to him. The two Captains grabbed a chair each and pulled them towards the bed. Sitting before Koji they spent several seconds watching him. After several seconds had passed one of them spoke.

“Hello little one.” Koji’s eyes widened as he heard the voice speak. The voice came from the man with the light blonde hair which partially covered his face. His grey eyes were gentle but Koji could see a spark of mischief behind them. Koji narrowed his eyes at the man. “My name is Kisuke Urahara, you can call me Kisuke and this is Shinji Hirako, just call him Shinji.” Kisuke said, indicating to the man to his right. “Now can you tell me your name?” he said with a cheeky grin.

“My name’s Koji., just Koji.” the little boy said. His voice slightly muffled from behind the knees that he peered over. Koji’s eyes met with the blue of Shinji’s and the man melted as the green eyes, filled with curiosity, looked into his.

“Well Koji.” Kisuke continued “You are currently in the medical wing of the 4th Division. Are you feeling okay? Can we get you anything?” the man asked. Koji was confused as to what the man was talking about. What was this 3rd Division that he spoke of? Was he expected to know? However as of that moment Koji was too hungry to think of much else. He therefore whispered his answer, in a timid voice, to the two men.

“Food, please.” Kisuke and Shinji had to restrain themselves from raising an eyebrow at the boy’s request. They knew that he had spiritual power but to be actively seeking out food meant that he had been regularly using said power for the past few days or so. A normal, non-trained spirit with spiritual power only needed to eat about once a fortnight if they were not using said power. The pair knew that there had been fresh berries in the boy’s pockets and so he had eaten within the past few days. Koji would have needed to use a lot of energy to be hungry so soon.

Unahana was, however, ahead of the two blundering fools that called themselves Captains and was already bringing out a bowl of fresh soup and a slice of bread to Koji before the pair of blondes even had a chance to respond to the request. She set the food down on the bed next to Koji. The boy gobbled down the food at a rapid rate, the food disappearing in the space of several minutes. The pair of Captains watched the boy eat as they thought about the strange child before them. He seemed young, very young, maybe having spent less than fifty years in the soul society and yet he seemed to have the potential to become extremely powerful. The pair were suddenly broken out of their thoughts by an unexpected question.

“What’s the fourth division?” Koji questioned. Shinji wanted to giggle at the look on Unahana’s face. The woman was very protective of her division and to hear someone not know what it was was rather amusing.

“Well it’s the medical division in the soul society and it’s insignia is a Bellflower” Kisuke said good-naturedly. He expected a look of recognition to fill the boy’s face at the information but instead he was met with only more confusion. The boy lowered his knees and leaned towards the two men. Koji looked into Kisuke’s eyes and whispered a question they had not been expecting to hear.

“What’s the soul society?”

* * *

The next few hours were spent explaining the soul society to Koji, they explained to the young boy where he was and how he had got here. They were shocked at his ignorance on the matter as he didn't seem to know anything at all about the soul society. They were further shocked when they discovered the boy had been here but a week. A week and already he had such strong spiritual pressure. The conversation had been going well until Shinji had questioned the boy about the voice he had talked to earlier that day. Koji had tensed at the mention and muttered that he was his only friend and that he needed to protect him. That had caused all three Captains in the room to throw looks at each other. They were all thinking the same thing. This ‘friend’ was probably not a good thing for the boy to have. Voices that no-one else could here could only mean one of two things: a Zanpakto spirit or the kid was not dealing with the transition to the soul society as well as they had hoped. It seemed almost impossible that the boy was talking to his Zanpakto after only a week here and yet they did not much like the other option either.

“Koji, why don’t you tell us a bit about this friend, huh? He must be nice.” Kisuke said gently. He did not want to worry the boy but needed to asses the nature of the the friend that Koji had.

“Yes he’s really nice” Koji snapped as he proudly puffed out his chest. He may not want anyone else to share the friendship of Tatsuo, but Koji was proud of his friend and wanted to show the three Captains just how amazing his friend was. “His name is Tatsuo and he’s always helping me. He’s teaching me to fight but it’s okay because I can’t hurt him. I cut him with my sword but it healed straight away, it was amazing!” the boy rambled excitedly “Tatsuo also says that he will be with me forever and that he’s proud that I’m his Master…” Koji trailed off realising that he had said a lot more than he had first intended. He just wanted them to know how amazing Tatsuo was and he had let his mouth run away with him. “Although, I’m not really sure what he meant by that” Koji muttered, almost inaudibly. He turned his face away from the Captains as he mumbled and was therefore unable to see the looks of shock on their faces. The two blondes were about to continue their questioning but were abruptly stopped by Unahana.

“I think that’s enough for today, don't you?” she said, giving a meaningful glare to the two other Captains. “We need to let little Koji here have his rest. Why don't you come and see him tomorrow.” The two blondes knew that the woman was serious and if they attempted to defy her in any way then they would spend a week in a hospital bed right next to Koji. The two made their way from the room, saying their goodbyes to Koji and leaving him to the care of Unahana.   



	3. Chapter 3

Koji had spent the past three days in a hospital bed mulling over all the he had been told. The revelation that he was dead had indeed been a it of a shock but as he never remembered being alive it made very little difference to him. He had pondered over the possibilities that may have been in his past but Tatsuo had assured him that anything he needed to know he would do so in time. Both Shinji and Kisuke had been back to visit him so much so that most of the time he was awake one of the two of them was there. If they were absent then Koji had had the company of Tatsuo, the two have sparred several more times since the initial one. Koji had been getting better at the fighting, his stamina and strength increasing. Although Koji was unsure as to whether theses skills were transferable to the world outside his head.

Koji had also become closer with the two blondes, trusting the two men the more time he spent with them. They seemed friendly and helpful and Koji believed that he could now call them friends. They talked with Koji and played games with him. Shinji had taught him a few card games including blackjack, rummy and cheat. While Kisuke had given him a drawing pad and pencils, showing him some of the basics of drawing. The two men had also failed to mention to Koji that they were Captains, keeping that little bit of information to themselves, for now. It was not that they lied, they told him what division they were in they just ‘forgot’ to mention that they were the leaders of said division.

Koji was currently listening to the two men, who sat before him, speak of a place they wanted him to go. They had told him that he was deemed well enough to leave the fourth division medical wing and that due to the strong spiritual pressure that he had and the fact he was already in contact with his Zanpakto, he was perfect to join the Shinigami society. It was a place where all souls with the potential to become Shinigami went and although Koji was young they still wanted him to go. All Koji had to do was pass the entrance exam that the two reassured him would be effortless. It would mean he got good training, clothes and food. After the two had promised Koji that they would still see him and could remain friends while he was at the academy. With that Koji are wholeheartedly. He wanted to go to the academy. He wanted to train and become strong enough that he was worthy of Tatsuo.

As soon as Koji responded in the affirmative to the pairs proposal all hell broke loose. The boy was pulled from the bed and dressed in a smart, black, Kimono. His hair was brushed into a more tamed mess then before. He was then picked up by Shinji, who placed him on his back and flash stepped to the Academy. As the trio arrived the two blondes knelt before Koji and each gave him a hug. They told him where to go and wished him luck before flash stepping away. Koji followed the pairs instructions and made his way into the academy to carry out his entrance exam. Koji could feel his heart hammering in his chest and his hands shook as he knocked on the door Shinji had told him about. He heard a muffled voice call out enter from inside the room and slowly pushed the door open before walking inside.   
  
As Koji walked inside he saw four people situated at a long table at the front of the room. The three introduced themselves as Sensei Ōnabara, a tall imposing man with a bald head and a pair of frames glasses on his face. Sensei Toyama was a shart, angular faced woman with brown hair and a strict air about her. Captain Ukitake was next to introduce himself, the man had long white hair matching the robe that went over his uniform. The final introduction was made by Senpai Shiba, a sixth year student who was there to assist in the assessment. The student was tall with spiky black hair. After the four people had introduced themselves the aptitude test began.

First Koji was asked a few basic questions about the soul society and its structure, which he answered with he ease, thanks to Shinji’s and Kisuke’s teachings. The next part was for Koji to preform a Kido spell. He was not expected to know one himself, they were simply testing his aptitude. Shiba Senpai stood and walked to Koji, he showed him the stance and incantation, telling Koji to aim the Kido at the training dummy in the corner of the room. Koji took several deep breath, adopting the stance the older boy had been holding several seconds before. Koji raised two fingers before him and shouted the incantation, aiming for the dummy’s heart. The Kido struck the dummy in a yellow flash of light. As the light struck ,the dummy was set alight and then with seconds was turned to ashes on the floor. The room was filled with silence for several seconds before the testing moved on.

Next Koji was handed a wooden training sword and told to stand before Shiba Senpai. The two stood, the tips of their swords meeting. Begin was shouted, curt and loud through the room. Koji instantly jumped back anticipating the lunge that Shiba made before he made it. Koji then made his own lunge and then wooden swords clattered together. Koji was pushed backwards as they met. He remembered his training and yet his stance low. He used his small size to dodge, duck and dive away from the older boy’s attacks. As the fight continued, Koji began to tire. His breath coming faster and his arms feeling weaker. As he felt he could go on no longer he heard Tatsuo’s voice fill his head.

‘You can do this little one.’ Tatsuo almost growled out to him. There was conviction in the voice. ‘You need to find your reason for fighting, Koji. Dig deep, find out what you want.’ Koji thought on what Tatsuo had said while doing another blow from Shiba’s sword, thronging himself to the floor before quickly picking himself up again. Why was it that he was fighting? What did he want? His thoughts swirled in his head for several seconds before he had a revelation. He wanted to be brave, be powerful, come the best, but why? The reason for wanting all theses things had one common goal. He wanted Tatsuo to be proud of him. For his friend to trust him and for them to fight together for the rest of his life.

“I want to be worthy.” Koji growled out, his emotions forcing their way to the surface. Koji gripped his sword tightly, preparing to put all of his effort into these last few moments of the fight. “I want to be worthy” Koji growled agin before running forward at Shiba. He went to lunge at the boy before spinning out of the way of his intended counter lunge. Koji ended up facing the older boy’s back and as Shiba was turning Koji thrust his sword forward and hit him in the chest. The unexpected hit in the chest caused the older boy to stumble backwards. his bottom connecting to the floor with a loud thud. With that the match ended and Koji was asked to leave the room. The group had somethings to discuss.

* * *

Ukitake watched as the small boy left the room. He had been shocked at the skill and talent such a young spirit had displayed. The Kido spell had been outstanding. The aim and power behind it at a level he had seen for a beginner display before. The boy’s Zanjutsu had also been relatively good. The moves were unpolished and jolty as they did not flow in the way an experienced fighters should. Yet, the boy’s reaction times were amazing, he had managed to dodge and dive, using his small frame to the utmost advantage. He needed to learn the basics of all the basic combat forms, but he seemed to have great potential. Potential he was sure would excite many within the soul society.

The rest of the members of the room were having similar thoughts. The boy was rough around the edges and yet he had the potential to become one of the greatest Shinigami ever. They were both exited and scared at the prospect. Shiba found himself pondering over the words the boy had said during the fight. What had he meant? What was he trying to become worthy of? The sudden determination the boy had felt had been inspirational to see. He knew that the boy was tiering with each step and yet somehow he had pulled strength and resolve from inside of him to win. That was something that Shiba had not been expecting to see. The group sat, lost in their thoughts for several minutes before Ukitake finally broke the silence. They were here to make a decision and it was impolite to leave the boy waiting any longer than was necessary.

“It seems we have a new member of the academy” the white haired Captain said with a gentle smile on his face. Shiba would you be so kind as to tell the boy that he can come and hear our verdict.” The black haired student nodded vigorously before rushing from the room to fetch Koji. Koji stood before the group and listed to Captain Ukitake speak. “We are pleased to tell you that you have been accepted into the academy. Congratulations” Ukitake said brightly. Shiba has your uniform and will show you to your room.Your classes start tomorrow. Now, off you go.”

* * *

Koji walked into his first class of the year. He had received his timetable and a map of the Academy yesterday. Koji had still, however, arrived at the class ten minutes early. He wanted to start as he meant to go on and he was exited to learn all that he could. Koji sat at a random desk and took out a notebook and pen from his bag that Kisuke had gifted him with. Today was his first session on Zanpakto spirits. A one hour theory session that was followed by an hours practical session. As Koji had missed the first few weeks of the course he was slightly worried that he would be further behind then his classmates would be. Koji had had a special allowance for his test to take place due to Kisuke and Shinji’s influence, not that he knew that of course. Koji, due to his worry, had therefore prepared himself to listen to each and every word the teacher said. Five minutes ticked by and numerous people entered the classroom in dribs and drabs. Koji was chatting with Tatsuo, about the content that the upcoming lesson may include, mumbling under his breath, when a figure walked up to him and stood before his seat.

“You are sitting in my seat boy.” Koji looked up to see a young man standing before him. He seemed to be around fourteen, although Koji knew he was probably much older than that. His long black hair was tied back in a ponytail, a few strands falling around his face. His slate grey eyes were glaring daggers at Koji. When Koji didn't respond the young man spoke again. “I said that’s my seat boy. Now I suggest that you remove yourself from it.” Koji could only stare in confusion at the grey eyed boy. What the hell was he talking about? Why couldn't the boy just sit somewhere else? Koji was already sitting in the seat the boy wanted. However before the argument continued any further the teacher walked into the classroom. The young man huffed and walked to the back of the classroom, sitting in another place. However he sent a glare to Koji which promised that this was not the end of the confrontation. The teacher introduced himself as Utamara Ibi, or Ibi Sensei, for Koji’s sake. The man had shoulder length purple hair that clumsily fell around his sharp face. Black piercing eyes looked over those in the room. His frame was small and yet he seemed to have toned muscles. However he limped, a cane in his hand as he walked into the room. Koji supposed that that was the reason for him becoming a teacher. A limp that bad would have prevented any advanced form of fighting. Koji wondered what had happened to him.

The lesson began and Koji diligently took notes, even if he didn't need to. The teachers voice was low and quite, forcing utter silence for him to be heard, as he described ways in which to initiate contact with a Zanpakto spirit and how how to enter into ones inner world. The teacher talked of the conflicts and battles that would ensue with the Zanpakto spirit until said spirit could be beaten and therefore controlled. Koji became confused as Ibi Sensei continued talking about how to control the Zanpakto. He didn't understand. Was it not possible to be friends with your Zanpakto? He was friends with his. Tatsuo was his best friend so why couldn't that be the case with others. Koji raised his hand and asked his question about becoming friends with your Zanpakto. He and Tatsuo respected each other and he would never want to force the man to do anything he didn't want to do. At Koji’s question was voiced a sharp and mocking laugh filled the room.

“You want to be friends with your sword, how childish.” Koji looked around to see the sneering face of the boy that had approached him earlier. “You are supposed to be the master and controller of your Zanpakto. Not friends.” The boy said, a look of disgust on his face. As the boy finished the rest of the class also started laughing. It took several minutes before the class sealed down with a glare from their teacher. Koji sank in his seat, humiliated by the rest of his classmates. Koji didn't even listen as Ibi Sensei continued to talk. His eyes were brimming with tears as the lesson continued. However he refused to let them fall. He didn't want to give the black haired boy the satisfaction of seeing him upset.

As the theoretical part of the lesson ended the teacher ushered all of the students into a large dojo to begin the practical part. Ibi Sensei walked at a slow pace, his limp worsening the longer he walked. Koji followed at the back of the group, making eye contact with no-one by hanging his head and scuffing his feet as he walked. When they reached the dojo the group were told to sit on the floor in a comfortable position. They needed to be relaxed and calm. They were to then to attempt to contact their Zanpakto. Koji, for fear of further ridicule, said nothing about the fact that he and Tatsuo had been talking for a long time now. He simply did as he was told. He closed his eyes and entered his inner world. His eyes flickered open to reveal his forest. As Koji saw Tatsuo tears began to roll down his face as he leapt into the man’s arms. He was sobbing heavily as he clutched the man, unwilling to relinquish his grip on him.

“Tatsuo” Koji said, his breath hitching as he attempted to control his tears. “We…we can be friends can’t we?” the little boy questioned. His eyes still streaming with tears. “I don't want to loose you Tatsuo. You are my best friend.” Koji nervously looked up to Tatsuo’s face. His cheeks stained with tears. He feared that he may see only rejection there. However, what he saw was a comforting smile lighting up the man’s face.

‘Don’t worry little one.’ Tatsuo soothed. ‘I have told you once already and I will tell you again, you are my master and I will always be here for you.’ Tatsuo raised his hand, silencing Koji as he tried to interrupt. ‘But I am also your friend, little one. I care for you, more than anything or anyone and we will always be together. You have no need to fear.’ Tatsuo then gave Koji a wide grin. He jumped back from the boy and adopted a fighting stance. Two swords appears in his hands and he threw one to Koji. “Now Koji, let’s fight till you are strong enough to pummel that arrogant boy into the ground. Go.’

With that Tatsuo lunged at Koji, the young boy dodging out of the way of the blow just in time. The two spent the next fifty minutes lunging, dodging, ducking and diving, although in Koji’s inner world it felt more like several hours. The two came to a stop, panting, with scuff and scrapes covering their bodies. Koji grinned, satisfied with the fight. He had a new fire burning in him. His motivation to be worthy going from a flickering candle to a raging fire. He was ready to be the best and to show everyone he was worthy of Tatsuo, as the man only deserved the best.

Koji pulled himself out of his inner world to seethe face of his teacher before him. The man looked concerned, his brow etched with lines showing his worry. Koji blinked up at him and tilted his head to the side. Curious as to why such a look was on his face. The man seemed to relax slightly as he saw Koji’s gaze upon him.

“The lesson is over. You better Hurry and get to your next class’ the teacher said divisively. Koji pushed himself up and noticed that there was no-one left in the room.He had been so lost in his inner world that he had not realised the lesson had ended. He winced as he walked towards the exit. Tatsuo may be immune to injury but Koji was not. A bruise was a bruise no matter inside his mind or outside, in reality. Koji had a sudden thought, he turned around so quickly he lost fell and faced his teacher.

“Sensei is there anywhere that I can train outside lessons?” Koji questioned. The man raised his eyebrow at the question. It was not the most normal of requests after someone’s first lesson. Usually new students were a little overwhelmed at all the new things that they were learning. However he answered the boy’s question willingly.

“You are free to use any of the dojos outside of class time as long as you clean up after yourself and leave the dojo in the condition that you found it in. Now off you go.” the teacher finished. Koji nodded his thanks and then ran out of the room towards his next class. Koji was determined to train until he could train no more.

* * *

Classes finished at 4.00 so at 4.30 Koji made his way towards one of the numerous dojos that filled the academy. He planned to train for the next two hours before going to dinner at 7.00. He then needed to do his homework. The life of a student was tough. Koji seated himself in the centre of the dojo and closed his eyes. He did not, however enter his inner world. Instead he regulated his breathing and concentrated on bringing forth his Zanpakto into the physical world. Koji knew that he was useless without a real sword. He needed a true manifestation of his power to be remotely worthy of anyone or anything and so he concentrated. He tried to find the power inside him. To realise the true nature of his being. He needed to find his sword. To find the representation of his powers. Time passed by as Koji delved deeper and deeper into the true nature of his power. With the guidance of Tatsuo he directed his power into manifesting his sword. His concentration was completely and utterly focused on creating said sword. He felt like he was floating down an underground river, faster and faster as each second passed. Darkness engulfed him, until finally images began to flash before him. He caught flickers of the images. They were of things that he didn't understand. A flash of white owl, a castle, a snake. The images began to move faster and faster, a dragon, a cauldron, a graveyard. The images were now moving so fast that all Koji could no longer see them. All he could see were flashes of light, one after another until finally a bright white light filled all of Koji’ vision. The light got brighter and brighter until Koji felt as though he was burning. Pain radiated through his body, building and increasing as the light became brighter and brighter.

Hours passed like minutes as Koji’s soul was strained to the max. All his power being put into controlling the pain that radiated through his body. Koji remained calm and yep his breathing regular. He focused on the pain that radiated through his body and pushed it. He pushed it as hard as he could towards his right hand. The light disappeared, Koji seeing nothing but darkness, but Koji could still feel the pain pulsing in the right hand side of his body. He pushed again, focusing all his will on pushing the pain into his right hand. An intense pain filled his hand, more intense then anything that Koji had ever felt before or that he thought he was able to comprehend. His skin felt as though it should be peeling of with the amount of heat that seemed to be radiating from it.

Finally Koji could take the feeling of pain no longer. His eyes snapped open and a small scream escaped his lips. Tatsuo’s voice filled his head. It soothed him, telling him he was amazing and that he had been successful. Koji’s eyes were unfocused and, the harsh lights were painful on his sensitive eyes. However this pain was eclipsed by the one that he felt in his hand. After blinking several times he looked to said hand to see it clutched tightly around the handle of a sword. His knuckles were white with the strain of his grip and even through the pain Koji’s eyes widened in awe at what he saw before him. The sword, a traditional Katana, sheathed before him. The sheath was a bright, pure white and the handle was deep black that seemed to be pulling in the light from around it. Koji gently raised the Katana to eye level, as though it were made of glass and examined it more closely. The hand guard was ornate and made of what appeared to be silver. It was in the shape of a dragon, wrapping itself around the sword. It’s mouth wide open in a roar. Koji delicately pulled the sword from it’s sheath. A snick echoed through the quiet room as the sword came out. As Koji lay the sheath down before him he examined the blade in awe. The blade was pure black, as dark as the handle and far more dangerous. However the tip was a bright and faming orange that seemed to burn through the black on the rest of the blade. Koji stood, blade in hand and thrust forward. The weight of the blade seemed to be an exquisite in his hand. He felt power rush through him that he had never felt before. The pleasure that filled him was indescribable. He would always love this feeling for the rest of his life. 


	4. Chapter 4

Koji didn’t know how much time had passed but he knew that when he finally came back to his senses it was dark outside, the moon high in the sky and the stars twinkling. Koji looked up towards those stars wondering how it was possible that he was seeing them. He shouldn’t be outside. He had been in the dojo and yet now he could feel grass between his toes and a cold breeze rushing through his hair. He looked to his right hand and saw his sword gripped between his fingers, the sheath was in his left. Koji gently slid the beauty that was his sword back into it’s sheath. The white, shimmering in the dark of the night. Koji looked around and saw that he was in a forest. The trees tall and thin, as though trying to reach the twinkling stars above them. All he could see were trees in every direction. Koji’s bare feet wiggled at the tickle at the grass between his toes and a small smile lit up his face. He may not know where he was but the night was beautiful and he was overjoyed at the successes that he had with his Zanpakto. Tatsuo was a beautiful sight to behold, it was a joy to hold him in his hand.

Koji spent the next few hours, aimlessly wondering through the forest he had found himself in. It was tranquil and Koji found himself more relaxed then he had ever been. All seemed right with the world and nothing could take the giant smile off his face. Even when the sun started to rise and the birds in the trees started to chirp lyrically, he still wondered, loving the feel of being at one with nature. Finally, after what felt like days Koji came to the edge of the forest. His eyes widened as he saw a large group of people all gathered around 200 meters away from the edge of the forest. They all seemed to have their backs towards Koji and were listening intently to a man that was standing on a platform before them. Koji quickly stepped back towards the forest, climbing up into one of the smaller trees. He could not hear what the man on the platform was saying but he did see a white robe over his uniform. Koji observed the captain with curiosity wondering where the hell he was. A flower, that Koji thought may be an iris was emblazoned on the wall behind the captain. Koji assumed, therefore, that he was in the seventh division. He really should not be here. However now was not the time to make his presence known. For now he could only watch and wait.

Around forty minutes passed before the man in the white finished speaking and the group of people made their way to wherever it was that they needed to be. Koji waited until every one of them had left before he began to make his way down from his hiding place. He gently dropped to the ground and made his way into the clearing that the large group of people had just vacated. He kept his hand clutched tightly onto his sword. He was in unfamiliar territory and even though there was little chance of him being attacked, he should still be prepared, just incase. He made his steps light and kept his spiritual pressure contained as much as he could. Although there was no way that he could keep the massive grin off his face. He just felt so amazing. Koji made his way from the clearance and towards the group of buildings that he saw. He tried to decide which direction to go from there. He had no idea which way it was back to the academy and so he stood for several seconds mulling over where he should go.

‘You know little one, it doesn't really matter which way we go. I think that you should pick a direction and just stick to it. We’re bound to find somewhere you recognise eventually.’ Tatsuo’s voice said, filling Koji’s head. Koji agreed with his friend and so after giving a brief nod in response, decided to go to the right. The grin still filling his face. The Sereitei was a circle, so the worst that could happen would be that Koji would make to make his way all the way around the entire thing to get back to the academy grounds. He made his way through many streets, twisting and turning to avoid any and all people that he may have encountered in his path. He made his way through the tenth and the eleventh division until he finally found himself in the twelfth division. Koji’s grin increased as he saw the sigil showing that he was entering the twelfth division. He was in Kisuke’s division. He should really pay the older man a visit seeing as he was in the area. The man may also help him to get back to the academy. Although he was unsure as to where he could find him. Koji thought about it for a sew seconds, before deciding that the best thing to do would probably be to ask someone. They were sure to know where he could find him. So Koji walked through the streets attempting to find someone to ask. He saw several people but most of them seemed extremely busy, many running through the streets at a rapid rate. Koji sighed, all he wanted to do was to see his friend. Was that too much to ask? Finally Koji saw a man walking down one of the streets. He seemed calm enough that Koji could approach him. The man had a pair of black framed glasses, blue eyes and shaggy brown hair and was wearing a set of standard Shinigami robes. Koji slowly stepped from his position down one of the alleys, hiding him from view, he would ask this man where to go. With a grin on his face he tried to draw the man’s attention towards him.

“Excuse me sir.” he said in a quite and polite voice. The man whipped his head towards Koji and he narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Koji, however, continued, unwilling to give up so easily. “Do you think that you could please tell me where I could find Kisuke Urahara?” Koji asked. The man raised an eyebrow incredulously and looked at Koji with disgust.

“What are you trying to pull kid. You need to be more respectful.” the man snapped at him. Anger in his eyes as he glared at Koji.

“I…I don’t know what you are talking about sir.” Koji said nervously, not liking the hate filled look that was being directed at him. He fidgeted slightly before continuing. “I just want to know where Kisuke is. I’d really like to see him.” Koji said, almost to himself. However the man obviously heard him as his glare seemed to, somehow, intensify.

“What is wrong with you?!” the man said yelling “How dare you speak of a Captain in such a way.” the man shouted. He grabbed Koji’s wrist and dragged him along with him. “I’m going to take you to the Captain right now and see what he thinks about all of this.” The man said, pulling hard on Koji’s wrist. Koji itched to pull out his sword but decided it was easier to explain the confusion over seeing Kisuke then it would be to explain how he stabbed a member of the twelfth division. Therefore he let himself be dragged behind the man, accused of a crime that he had not committed. He winced at the force that was put behind the pulling. His wrist was already feeling sore when he had only been pulled for a few seconds. The further Koji was dragged into the division the more stares he was met with. Whispers followed him as the members of the twelfth division wondered over his origins. It was very unusual to see an academy student in the twelfth division. Especially one being dragged around by the sixth seat Mura Shingen in the middle of the day. Koji, with his left hand, ensured that he kept his zanpakto close to his chest, unwilling to let it out of his sight. He would not panic, he just had to find Kisuke and all would be fine.

The two reached a building and Shingen pushed the door open and dragged Koji in behind him. He pulled the boy down twisting corridors until finally he stopped outside a door. Koji was sure that his wrist would be severely bruised with the amount of force that the man had been holding it with. He was also worried as to who it was that would be behind the door. He hoped that it would be Kisuke but this day had taught him that people didn't ever seem to act in the way that you expected. The man knocked on the door and as it opened Koji was pulled inside, wincing from the throbbing in his wrist. As Koji entered the room he looked up to see Kisuke sitting before him. His eyes widened and the small smile that had been absent for the past half hour managed to force it’s way onto his face at seeing his friend. He stepped forward, ready to hug the man and try to get this mess sorted out. However as he moved Shingen pulled him back, tutting and causing the pain in his wrist to flair up again. This caused tears to sparkle in Koji’s eyes. Kisuke’s own eye’s hardened as he saw this. No-one was allowed to hurt Koji and get away with it. The little boy was precious to him.

“Captain Urahara I am sorry to intrude” Shingen began to speak pompously. “but this boy has been galavanting around the division, spouting nonsense about trying to find you. He was being extremely disrespectful sir and I felt that it was my duty to bring him here to be disciplined.” As Shingen spoke Kisuke barley listened. Instead he stood up and walked over to Koji, conceded for the boy’s wellbeing. Shingen seemed not to notice, instead he was lost in his own self-importance as he continued to talk of Koji’s downfalls. Kisuke knelt before Koji and took the boy’s chin in his hand, forcing the boy’s eyes to meet his. He could see, more clearly, the pain that was in the boy’s eyes and his anger flared again.

“Shingen” Kisuke hissed in a dangerous voice, standing up as he spoke, to meet the man’s eyes. The sixth seat’s head whipped towards his Captain, noticing, for the first time, that the man had moved. “I would appreciate it if you let go of Koji’s wrist.” Kisuke’s voice was hard and he pronounced each syllable meaningfully. The anger was obvious to anyone with a half a brain. Shingen seemed to realise that he was in trouble and he dropped the boy’s wrist as though it had burned him. He felt on edge, however he had no idea what he had done wrong. He had only disciplined an insolent whelp that had been disrespecting his Captain. “Koji, why don’t you come and sit down, while I deal with this mess.” Kisuke said, standing and indicating to the chair that he had just vacated. Kisuke looked towards his sixth seat, eyes narrowed and killing intent radiating from his form. Koji quickly made his way behind Kisuke, still keeping his grip tight on his sword as he scuttled across the room. He did not want to be involved in the conflict that was bound to ensue. As Koji sat he also saw the Thistle insignia emblazoned on the back of Kisuke’s white robe. That merely confirmed what Shingen had been saying and yet Koji was a little too frazzled and his wrist a little to sore to care too much about that right now.

“Captain I…” Shingen stuttered out, trying to come up with something to say that would defuse the situation. However before he could get an further Kisuke raised his hand silencing the man before him. He did not want to hear any excuses that the man could come up with.

“Shingen I do not appreciate you assuming things that you have no right to assume. In future when someone asks to see me I expect them to be brought to me respectfully and uninjured.” Kisuke said with a growl. Shingen’s eyes snapped to the boy behind him and then back to the Captain. What did he mean injured? He hadn't touched the boy. Kisuke noticed the dumbfounded look on the young man’s face and raised an eyebrow. “It seems your ignorance knows no bounds.” Kisuke said with an eye roll. “When you strongly grip a small wrist for an extended period of time it tends to bruise.” Shingen’s eyes widened in realisation. He had not meant to hurt the boy, but his anger had been so strong he had failed to notice how hard he had been gripping his wrist. “Now. I suggest that you leave so that I can see to Koji’s injuries and before my anger at you blinds my sense.”

With that Kisuke turned his back on the idiotic sixth seat and made his way towards Koji. He would be sure to punish the idiotic man that had hurt his young charge but for now said charge needed his attention. Shingen got the message and quietly left before he ended up at the end of his Captain’s sword. In silence Kisuke approached Koji, he gently took the boy’s wrist in his hands. Even with the delicate touch Koji still flinched as it caused pain to throb through his wrist. Kisuke gently soothed Koji before casting a healing Kido at the young boy’s arm. His wrist was engulfed in a bright light for several seconds before it faded, revealing a, now, pale, blemish free wrist. Koji let a small smile light up his face as the pain from his wrist totally vanished. However questions were still swirling around in his head. He wanted to know why Kisuke hadn't told him about being a Captain. About how it was even possible for him to be a Captain. Kisuke could evidently see the confusion on Koji’s face as he addressed the boy.

“I’m sorry I didn't tell you Koji.” he said with a sigh. “But what’s more important is how it is that you got here.” Kisuke seemed worried as he spoke. “It’s a weekday Koji, you should be in one of your classes and yet you are brought here. It’s dangerous in the Seireitei. You know that. How did you even get here Koji?” Kisuke finished. He seemed frustrated but also scared for Koji’s safety. Kisuke felt as though this must be how a parent felt. Koji looked at Kisuke nervously. He was worried about what Kisuke may say and the fact that the man was a Captain only made him more terrified. He thought he might cry. Kisuke sighed again. He knew he was being harsh on the boy but he had been so worried when he had seen the boy dragged into his office. He pulled Koji into a hug and again whispered reassurances to the young boy. He picked him up and sat down in the chair, setting the young boy down on his lap. “Koji, why don't you tell me how you got here little one?” Kisuke said softly.

Koji told the older man all about his day and the previous night. He finally let his fear and anxiousness out that he had been holding in for the last few hours as he told the story. Although as he told Kisuke about his new sword his mood lifted and Kisuke seemed impressed at the revelation that the boy had already created a physical manifestation of his Zanpakto. The voice in the boy’s head was obviously not a case of delusion. The boy was much more powerful then he had first thought. What would this boy become when after only a day at the academy he had a physical Zanpakto? It was amazing and as Koji proudly showed Kisuke Tatsuo’s new form, the man could only stare in awe at the boy before him.

* * *

After their long and heartfelt talk explaining the secrets that Kisuke had kept from him and the reasons that he had for them, the two made their way back to the academy. As they walked Kisuke explained the layout of the Seireitei to Koji, ensuring that the boy would not get lost again. In one hand Koji clutched his Zanpakto and in the other he clutched Kisuke’s hand. This gained many strange looks from those of the divisions that they walked through. They walked back the way that Koji had came and with Kisuke’s explanation Koji realised how close he had initially been to the Academy grounds. If he had only turned left instead of right he would have been there in a matter of minutes. Still it did not matter now. He had Kisuke to tell him his mistakes and so he would not make them again.

As the pair made their way back to the Academy Kisuke asked Koji what class that he had next. Koji told him that he had Kido theory lesson at eleven and seeing as it was five to eleven now he should probably make his way there. Kisuke hid a grin as he gripped Koji’s hand more tightly and started walking towards the Kido classroom. Koji had told him of the bullying problem and Kisuke had a rather abrupt way to put a stop to it. By the time they reached the classroom it was around five past eleven and so the rest of the students and their teacher were already inside. Kisuke knocked on the door and waited for several seconds before it swung open to reveal Sakane Sensei and a sea of student’s faces before him. The woman seemed shocked at his appearance and spent several seconds simply staring at him before she seemed to regain her composure.

“Captain Urahara, please come in.” the woman said moving aside to let him pass. Kisuke only took a few steps into the room, pulling Koji along with him, before he stopped, a grin lighting up his face.

“I’m sorry to disturb your class Sakane Sensei. I am merely here to apologise and to return one of your wayward students.” Many of the students in the class stared with wide eyes, jaws hanging open as they saw that the runt was in the presence of a Captain and seemed to know said Captain. They seemed to know each other well if their clasped hands were anything to go by. “You see” Kisuke continued. “I invited young Koji here over for breakfast with me and yet it seems that we lost track of time.” Kisuke chuckled slightly at this. “I’m sorry for any trouble this may have caused and I shall now leave you to get back to your lesson.” Kisuke gave the teacher a wide smile before giving Koji a tight squeeze. “Be good now Koji, I’ll see you soon.” he said loudly as he released the boy.

“Bye Kisuke.” Koji said shyly and yet it was loud enough for the entire class to hear. Many of their eyes became wider then they had been before as they realised just how close the two were. Koji was on a first name basis with a Captain. Just who the hell was this kid? Just as Kisuke was about to close the door he turned back towards the room.

“Oh and Koji, you should probably go and see Shinji soon, as well. You know how he worries about you.” Kisuke said with a grin as he shut the door. Many student’s eyes nearly dropped from their sockets when the Captain said that. Two Captains! The boy knew Captains. What the hell was going on here.

Kisuke, instead of making his way back to his own division, made his way towards the office of Sensei Ōnabara, one of the leaders of the Academy. He was one of the staff that dealt with the placing of students into their specific classes. It was not often, but sometimes students needed to be moved into different classes. He explained to the man that Koji had already created a physical manifestation of his Zanpakto and so he therefore needed to be moved to a different level class, at least in some lessons. The two discussed the boy and about which classes that should be changed. They finally concluded that due to the fact that he had only been in classes a day that he would have to stay in mostly the same classes until his skills could be fully assessed. Koji would, however, be moved up to all fifth year classes that involved Zanpakto contact due to the fact that he already had a physical manifestation of one. He would be learning how to release his Zanpakto and about further contact with his Zanpakto spirit. Koji would be given his new timetable by the end of the day and his new lessons would start tomorrow. As Kisuke left Onabara contemplated the implications that such a powerful individual would have within the academy and within the rest of the soul society. 


	5. Chapter 5

t had been six months since Koji had started at the academy and it had been a rollercoaster ride. He was steadily improving more and more each day. All lessons that Koji now went to were sixth year ones and he was training harder then he had ever thought possible. He barely ate or sleep and spent all of his free time in the dojo. He had improved in leaps and bounds. He wanted to become worthy for Tatsuo more than anything and to do that he needed to train as much as possible. The Zanpakto was also Koji’s best and only friend at the academy, encouraging Koji to work even harder. What Kisuke may have thought of as assistance in revealing the friendship that the two had, had not been as successful as the man had first assumed. Instead the revelation had lead to much ridicule and doubts as to Koji’s right to be in the academy at all. Of course no one said anything to his face, yet he had heard the whispers. They all thought that Koji was only in the classes that he was due to the fact that he had two Captains as friends. They thought he was surfing off his friends’ power and had no real reason to be where he was at all.

Koji had not, however, let their opinions stop him. Koji knew that he had a right to be here as much as every other student did. He was worthy of being in the academy just as he was working his way towards being worthy for Tatsuo. All he needed to to do was train and train as hard as he could. That hard training was how Koji had ended up in his current situation. An very early start to the day, one sanctioned by the Academy for all sixth years to test their skills against one another. There were only three more months left before the sixth years would qualify from the academy. If they passed their end of year assessments of course. Therefore their Senseis wanted to test them to see what they needed to improve on and what their weaknesses in a real battle situation were. Due to the advanced nature of the sixth year classes each member had a physical manifestation of their Zanpakto. This meant that sparing session could be done to emulate real life situations.

Today’s activities may be more similar to a tournament then a training session, Koji supposed. The plan was that the sixth years were to spar each other. The tournament was a double elimination type, meaning that each student got to spar at least twice. The students were to use their own Zanpaktos and were allowed to use all of the arts that the academy taught. Zanpaktos were, however, to always remain in their sealed forms during the conflict. The winner of the spar was the first member to draw blood from their opponent. Due to the fact that there were twenty sixth year students the spars would be taking place over the next five days and due to the large amount of manpower needed to carry out such an event lessons were cancelled for the week for the lower years. A total of thirty six spars were to be held. This meant that ten spars would be held on the first two days, six each on the third and fourth days and four on the last day. The last day having the final match to see who would be declared the overall winner of the tournament. The younger and non sparing sixth year students were allowed to watch the spars as these were seen as a great learning opportunity even if they were not sparing themselves. Members of the Seireitei were also permitted, if their schedules allowed, to watch the spars and many of them were often roped in to help with ensuring the safety of the spars and ensure that the participants obeyed the rules. It was the price they had to pay to have a day off.

Koji and the rest of the sixth years were kneeling before their Senseis in the large dojo that was to be their sparing arena. The Senseis explained to the sixth years the strict rules that were to abided by. Any and all members of sixth year that were caught cheating in any way were to be immediately disqualified from the tournament and sent back into fifth year, having to work their way through the last few months of fifth year before starting sixth year again. That threat was severe enough to deter even the most deceitful student, making them think that cheating was not a wise thing to do. Or at least getting caught was not. As the speech came to a close the students were directed to warm up and prepare themselves for the day. They would not start their first spar for another hour and yet already people were beginning to turn up in preparation to watch. This tournament was a prime opportunity to asses who was the best of the sixth years and many captains and lieutenants often turned up to see if there were any possible new recruits to their divisions. Of course the individual had to agree to join the division but they could always be given a nudge in the right direction.

Koji looked around at the others in the room. Many seemed nervous, twitching or shaking in their fear and Koji couldn't blame them. Koji himself had only been training with the group of sixth years for a little over three months and yet many of the students that were standing here today had been working their way to this point for decades. Today was the day that they could prove themselves to the soul society as a whole and to that Koji could relate. He may not have any friends in the group but he felt sympathy for every single one of them. Koji’s match was the fifth of the day and was directly after the lunch break. Therefore the first half of the day would be about keeping his cool and not letting any comments or jibes, about himself that he might hear, get to him. Koji therefore walked to the side of the dojo. He would keep himself by the edges of the group to avoid any confrontations that he didn't want or need. He would stay in a place that he could see the spars from and yet would not have to deal with the rest of students.

More and more people continued to make their way in and as the seating area became around two thirds full the first spar began. It was two students, a boy and a girl that Koji had seen around the class but had never had reason to talk to them. Koji supposed that that was the case with most of the class members. Of course he knew a few of them by name as he had been paired to train with them, however most of them had avoided Koji as much as possible. Koji’s eyes followed the spar but it seemed to be nothing special. Of course the pair were fighting very hard, using a mixture of Zanjutsu and Kido. The girl, however, seemed to be dominating the spar. Her cuts and lunges were only just being dodged by the boy and he seemed to be becoming more and more tired the longer they fought, although he was utterly unwilling to give up. The girl finally lunged forward, ducking out of the block the boy put up and sliced her blade across the boys side, cutting through his robes and into his skin. Blood could be seen on her blade as it dripped to the floor. The match ended and the boy was taken to a volunteer from the fourth division to be healed.

Koji spent the next four hours watching people come and go, as well as watching the matches and assessing his competition. He wouldn't spar any of these people today but there were four more days of fights and Koji could be sparing with any of them. It was always good to know the fighting style of a possible opponent. As the fourth match of the day ended a break was called for lunch. There was a large buffet put on for all of the attendants of the matches. The eaters could then take their food and eat either outside or into the main dining hall that was about a five minute walk away. Koji let all of the others leave but he himself remained in the dojo. He was too nervous to eat and instead wanted to warm up before his match. He spent a few minutes looking around the now empty dojo before he walked to the centre of the room and began.

For fifteen minutes Koji did his aerobic warm up running from one side of the dojo to the other at a steady speed. He then began to do stretches, high knees, heel flicks and so on. When Koji was fully stretched he then began his warm up with Tatsuo. He gently removed the sword from the sheath and went through his numerous Katas, repeating them over and over, getting faster and faster with each set. Koji was interrupted from his warm up when he heard the mewl of a cat coming from behind him. He whipped his head around to see a sleek black cat with yellow eyes. The cat mewled again and Koji walked towards it, placing Tatsuo back in his sheath.

“Hello there.” Koji said kneeling before the cat and petting it’s head gently. “How did you get in here, huh?” he asked, expecting no answer. The cat purred and rubbed back against Koji’s hand as the boy continued his stroking. “I wonder where you came from. Well…you can’t stay here.” Koji said. He pondered what to do next while talking to the cat. “You see there’s a fight in here soon and we wouldn't want you to get hurt.” Koji gently pulled the cat into his arms and stood up. The cat hissed in slight discomfort but as Koji began again to stroke the cat with his free hand it it seemed to settle. As Koji was nearing the exit he was greeted by the face of Sensei Ōnabara. The man towered above him and looked at him with a scowl on his face.

“What are you doing in here?” the teacher grumbled out. Koji was not sure what to say. The situation was weird enough without trying to explain it to his teacher. Koji let out a small puff of air from his nose before attempting to explain.

“Well you see Sensei, I was just warming up and this cat just walked in here. I’m just going to take it back outside as I thought that a cat shouldn’t really be in a dojo and…”

“I wasn't talking to you boy.” the teacher growled out. Koji looked at him in confusion. There was no one else in the room. “In fact I am talking to that cat in your arms. She knows for a fact that she shouldn't be in here. She should be letting you warm up in peace. She knows better than that” the man said disdainfully. Koji looked up at the teacher in confusion. What did he mean? How could a cat know anything. It was a cat for crying out loud.

“What…what do you mean Sensei?” Koji questioned.

“Put the cat down boy.” Ōnabara respond demandingly. Koji did as bid and gently placed the cat back on the floor. He didn't want to upset the teacher. “Now Captain Shihōini I would appreciate it if you would stop this stupidity and turn back.” the teacher said with a scolding tone. Koji had no idea what the man was talking about. Why was he telling off a cat? It didn't make sense. He was pretty sure that the man was going crazy. Koji was, however, snapped out of his thoughts as the room became saturated with spirit energy. The cat before him was gradually changing. It’s limbs elongating, it’s claws turning into hands and feet. The black fur turned into mocha coloured skin and a shock of purple hair. Koji’s eyes widened in shock, his jaw hanging open. The cat had turned into a woman. The cat woman stood up, her naked form covered only by her hands as she flicked her hair from her eyes.

“You just had to ruin my fun didn't you Gengorō.” the naked woman said with a pout. Sensei Ōnabara said nothing. Instead he scowled at the woman, rolling his eyes and handed the woman his outer layer to give her some modesty. Once the woman was partially covered she looked to Koji who had so far remained silent. “Well this isn't quite the meeting I had in mind.” the woman said with a grin. “but it’s nice to meet you Koji. I’m Captain Yoruichi Shihōin.” Yoruichi gave a dramatic bow casing the flimsy robe to fall open slightly as she did so. However Koji failed to notice it as he thought about the fact that the woman had just been a cat. There seemed to be something familiar about that. Why did it feel as though he'd seen someone do this before? It just felt so right to see.

“Why a cat?” Koji blurted out before he could stop himself. Yoruichi blinked at the boy’s question. Then her eyes lit up with humour and a laugh escaped from her lips.

“Why a cat, he asks. Why a cat.” the woman said, still laughing. She couldn't believe that that was the question that the boy decided to ask. The usual response was either what the hell was that or why are you naked. This was a new and most enjoyable reaction. This kid was an interesting one indeed. Without giving Koi any sort of answer to his question the woman walked towards the exit giving a quick wave and saying “See you later kid.” She then turned back into a cat and padded out of the room, the robe she had been wearing falling to the floor. Sensei Ōnabara watched her leave before picking up the fallen clothing and making his way back out of the dojo without saying a word.

Koji took several minutes to work out what the hell had just happened. He had met another Captain and a weird one at that. The woman seemed like a lunatic and she could turn into a cat. It was insane. After several minutes he shook himself from his thoughts about the crazy captain and attempted to calm himself down again. He needed to clear his thoughts and prepare himself for the fight that was about to ensue. He only had around ten minutes before everyone would return to the dojo so he needed to get in the right mind set. A few words to Tatsuo and Koji began going through his katas again. He kept his breathing steady as he went through the moves that had become second nature to him over the past six months. Each one steady and precise. As Koji finished his final set he noticed that several people had already entered the dojo and more were trickling in with each passing second. Several of them were looking at him with interest shimmering in their eyes, others with awe and a few with fear. Koji moved away from their scrutiny, kneeling at the side of the room in preparation for his spar.

At five to one Sensei Ōnabara reentered the dojo, making his way towards Koji. The boy stood up as the teacher approached, giving him a small bow to show his respect to the man before him. It was time for the spar. Koji knew now was his moment to show Tatsuo and everyone else just how worthy he was. Before him stood Kuma Toyama. The young man had the appearance of one in their early twenties. He had bouncy blonde curls and bright turquoise eyes. He was of average hight with a rather muscular form. The boy gave Koji a small nod showing him that the fight would be a clean one. Koji felt his heart beat speed up in his chest as he nodded in return. Sensei Ōnabara raised his hand between the pair. His fingers counted down, 3, 2, 1. This was it.

Toyama leapt into action, his Zanpakto swinging violently at Koji. Koji easily dogged the blow, the older boy’s sword clattering to the floor. Koji spent the next few minutes dodging the blows that the other threw at him. He easily used flash step to totally avoid the blows both showing off his own skills and tiering the boy out. Koji finally drew his own sword from its sheath and began to block the blows that the other was aiming at him. He flicked the boy’s sword easily to the side and then brought his own up. His blade quickly met with Toyama’s, the boy’s blade pushing against his own. Koji’s excitement increased as the swords continued to clash and with each move Koji’s grip on his spiritual pressure become less and less secure. Unbeknownst to him his power was saturating the air and a wide grin was lighting up his face. Koji could have very easily beaten the older boy several times and yet he wanted for the fight to show both of their strengths and if the fight were to end too soon then neither of them would know what it was that they needed to improve on. A few more dodges and a few more sword clashes and Koji decided it was time to end the fight. It was becoming boring and he was sure that both of them had shown all that they could in the fight. Koji ducked from an incoming slash and in the opening that the older boy left Koji lunged forward and created a small cut on his opponents check. Shallow enough to be easily healed and yet deep enough to draw blood. The fight was over. Koji had won and won easily.

As Koji came down from the high of the battle he looked around the room. He tried to regulate his breathing and as he realised he had let his spiritual pressure get out of control he attempted to reign it back in. There were many eyes all around the room and pining him down with their gazes. Several younger students seemed relieved as Koji got his power under control. The strength of it had been getting to them slightly. Koji’s eyes flicked around, he saw the now clothed Yoruichi staring, she winked at him when she met his eye. He dragged his eyes away from her and spotted the faces of Shinji and Kisuke near the back of the room. Koji grinned at them. He quickly shook the hand of Toyama praising him for his skill and thanking him for the good fight. The boy then quickly made his way towards Shinji and Kisuke. The people easily parted for him. Many were standing around the dojo as the seating room was easily filled with all the students that had turned up to watch. As Koji reached the pair of captains he embraced them both, one after the other.

This led to a few raised eyebrows and whispers from the non-students in the room. To see a student play with his opponent, grinning as though he was having the time of his life and then to go over and hug two Captains was an odd sight to see. Many of the occupants of the room were wondering who the boy was even was. They had not been interested enough in the spar to listen to his name, too busy talking about the next fight in which one of the Shiba clan would feature. They assumed that the fight would be boring and over quickly. They had been wrong. The boy seemed amazingly powerful. The spiritual pressure that the boy had released had been extremely powerful for that of an academy student. His fighting skills were also massively developed. He could have taken his opponent out in a matter of minutes and yet he had played with the boy, showcasing both their skills to their fullest extent. They were all impressed with him and found it a mystery as to why they had never heard of the boy before. It was as though he had appeared from nowhere. There were sure to be a lot of higher ranking offices at the next match that the boy had. He was one to watch. 


	6. Chapter 6

Koji’s second day of sparing had been similar to the first. The competitor had been a pretty girl who looked around sixteen. She had had black hair and pink eyes that had shimmered with determination. The girl’s Zanjutsu had been passable but she had excelled in Kido. However due to Koji’s speed none of her marks had hit their targets. Koji had ended the battle quickly, seeing that the girl’s tactic was to retreat to a safe distance before casting her spells. This had bored Koji as it offered no challenge. Therefore he had waited for her to cast a kido, dodging it and using flash step to cut her arm. The spar had lasted no more than ten minutes. That meant that today, the third day and his third fight, Koji was very much looking forward to his spar.

Koji stood before his newest opponent. The boy looked to be around seventeen, his head was as shiny as a cue ball, his eyes were black and were framed by a shock of neon pink eyeshadow. Koji was pretty sure that his name was Ikkaku Madarame. The boy had a massive grin on his face and looked exited for the fight. Koji could feel his own excitement building as he saw the look on the older boy’s face. This was sure to be fun. He had seen Madarame in training and the young man was strong, very strong. Koji was sure that the boy would give him a challenge. Koji removed Tatsuo from his sheath and adopted an offensive stance. In truth he would let the other make the first move but it was always good to keep your opponent on their toes. The countdown, 3, 2, 1. Madarame lunged, his sword aimed with killing intent at Koji’s heart. Koji almost laughed at how bold the attack was.

Koji easily dodged the blow. Swords clashed and the two came face to face. Both of them had wide grins on their faces and their eyes were twinkling with glee. Koji was pushed back by Madarame. The older boy was attempting to back him into a corner. Koji was not about to let that happen. He fired a quick, incantation-less, Kido spell into the others chest with his spare hand. Madarame was forced a few steps backwards away from Koji. Koji jumped up and brought his sword down to smash into the boy’s head. A dodge to the side.Tatsuo skimmed the material of Madarame sleeve but not enough to cut him. Koji leapt backwards as the blade came towards him. A series of doges, lunges, dives and clashes of Zanpakto led to two slightly out of breath students.

Koji wanted to show his worth, wanted to show the others that he deserved his place. Wanted to show Tatsuo that they were friends for a reason. That he deserved him.

Madarame brought down the blade and Koji didn't doge. The blade hit his shoulder and hit it hard and yet it did not pierce the skin. Koji let out a small, childish giggle as the blade bounced from his undamaged skin. In his shock, Madarame let his guard down. The distraction was enough for Koji to send a binding Kido spell at his opponent, knocking him to the ground. He then walked towards the prone figure, who was now attempting to break through the magic that held him. He would not break them. Koji was sure of that. Koji raised his blade and gently, like he was caressing the young man below him, drew his blade across his chest. Blood bloomed from the shallow cut and Koji released the Kido holding the older boy in place. He offered his hand to Madarame. The young man looked hesitant before gripping the hand tightly and using it to help pull himself up. He then pulled Koji into a great big bear hug. Koji was sure the life was being squeezed out of him.

“A challenge.” Madarame exclaimed excitedly as he released Koji. “I haven't had one of those in a while. Yumi is going to love you.” the student said with a wide grin on his face. He thumped Koji on the back and then grabbed him by the wrist. Koji had to repress a flinch as he remembered the last time that someone had done that and the pain resulting from it. Madarame, however had a much gentler grip as he dragged Koji across the room. “Hey Yumi” the older boy shouted as he reached his destination.

A young man, around the same age as Madarame turned around a scornful look on his face. Koji recognised the boy from classes. He and Madarame were often together. The young man had shoulder length silky black hair that was cut to perfectly to frame his face. Eyeliner was painted on his top eyelid that made his brown eyes appear bigger. Those eyes flittered between curiosity and scorn as he looked between the two people before him.

“I told you not to call me Yumi, Ikkaku.” the boy sounded tired as he spoke. As though he had told the other a hundred times and yet had resigned himself to the fact that he would never listen. The objection seemed more out of habit then actual annoyance. “Now who is this?” he said turning his attention towards Koji. His eyes twinkled in delight as they looked over his form and they practically sparkled as they looked into his eyes. “He does have very beautiful eyes.” the older boy said. “They are most unique.” The glee in the other’s eyes only intensified.

“Yumi this is Koji…” Madarame trailed off as he looked to Koji “What’s your surname again?” the older boy asked.

“Oh, it’s…just Koji.” Koji replied quietly. He felt a little shy under the scrutiny of the two older teens. He was unsure as to why he was being introduced to this new boy.

“Well there you go Yumi, this is just Koji. Koji this is Yumichika Ayasegawa, but you can call him Yumi.” Madarame said, huffing out a laugh as he finished. Yumi growled and shoved Madarame, although his amusement was obvious in his eyes. Madarame shoved him back in good humour. The two seemed to go through the playful fight that Koji assumed were a common occurrence. Koji watched the two in curiosity. He wondered how long the two had known each other. Their relationship just seemed to be so easy.   
  
“Come on Ikkaku, the next spar is about to start.” Yumichika grumbled. The two started to move into a better position to see the spar. Koji stood awkwardly for several seconds unsure as of what to do. “Come on then Koji. You’ll want to see the fight too I expect.” Yumichika added after he had moved a few paces away, flashing a quick grin to the small boy. Koji gave the young man a nervous smile before following behind him and Ikkaku to watch the next fight.

Koji spent the rest of the day with the two older sixth years and for the first time since joining the academy Koji had lunch with someone other than Kisuke or Shinji. Yumichika and Ikkaku seemed to have a very close relationship and yet they still seemed to accept Koji into their group. Koji wondered if this was the beginning of a new friendship. Madarame, or Ikkaku, as the young man had insisted on being called seemed to want to fight everyone and anyone and told Koji of a few of his favourite fight. Yumichika seemed to know the stories that he told by heart and occasionally added a few extra details that Ikkaku may have missed out. Yumichika seems like a nice but defensive person. Koji learned very little about him other than that the boy seemed obsessed with beauty. Although to Koji this seemed like yet another defence mechanism. But overall Koji really liked both of them. He just hoped that they weren't threatened by the fact that he was friends with two captains. He didn't want a possible friendship to be ruined so easily.

* * *

Day four rose bright and early. Koji had no matches today as today was the lower bracket final. It would show who was the best out of those who had lost their matches on the first day. That was not to say that these matches were to be boring, no, in fact many of them were involving very skilled students. Some had just been unlucky in their first matches. However today was also the day that many Captains or Lieutenants would attempt to make first contact with those in the upper bracket. This was due to the fact that the day was one when they could talk at leisure with the students due to the fact that there was no pressure of time. Koji was greeted at breakfast by Yumichika and Ikkaku, both of whom joined him at his usually empty table. It seemed that they were committed to making friends with him.

Throughout the day the three of them stuck together as none of them had any matches. Koji had knocked Ikkaku from the competition when he had beaten him and Yumichika would have his next spar the following day. The three had several people approach them throughout the day but the trio mostly ignored them, instead pretending to be extremely interested in the current Spar that was in action. This did however lead to a large number of people approaching them during their lunch break. However it seemed that Yumichika and Ikkaku politely rebuffed any and all attempts at the requests many were attempting to put forward in regards to joining their divisions. This also meant that Koji was well protected from any of the questions that the approaching people asked. Even if their intention was to direct questions towards him many didn't know his name and so one the older pair of students would answer instead. For that Koji was very appreciative. He did not want to have to answer any questions that the people may have.

However the atmosphere seemed to change when the Captain of the eleventh division arrived. As the man neared them Ikkaku and Yumichika stood up so quickly it was as though they had been burned. They looked, wide eyed, at the Captain before bowing low before him. The man grinned, a wicked grin filled with malicious intent. Koji shivered at the look. It was one that echoed of the man’s pain and suffering and made Koji feel cold inside. He felt for the man. Koji stood at a more much more sedate pace then the other two students at his table and slowly inclined his head to the Captain before him. He, however, avoided looking at the man’s face. He didn’t want to see the pain that he knew he would be there. Keeping his head down Koji failed to notice the shock of pink hair that poked its way up from behind the Captain’s shoulder. The young girl climbed up onto the Captain’s shoulder, her hands grasping his hair before she jumped onto the table, somehow managing to avoid all the food.

“Baldy” she yelled happily. She climbed up Ikkaku and sat on his shoulders, rubbing the young man’s head and grinning madly. Yumichika let out a laugh, unable to contain it through his hands. The young girl’s attention turned towards him at the noise. “Yun-Yun” she called out again, waving her hand at Yumichika. This time it was Koji that let out a snort of laughter. He just found the look on Yumichika’s face far too funny. Brown eyes met green and the girl’s head tilted to the side in curiosity. “Who’s that Kenny? I don't know that one.” she questioned, pointing a small finger at Koji. Koji was about to answer the girl, thinking that it was the polite thing to do, but was interrupted before he had a chance.

“That’s Koji Lieutenant” a voice said. Koji frowned at the voice, wondering who it could be before he looked around to see Shinji standing to the right of Captain Zaraki. Koji smiled at the man and gave a small wave. SHinji gave a small smile in response before turning his attention back to the pink haired girl. “He is worth knowing, I can assure you of that Lieutenant.” Shinji proclaimed, his look serious as he did so.

“Ko-ko” the girl proclaimed “It’s always nice to meet someone new.” The girl jumped from Ikkaku’s shoulders and onto the table. She then sat before Koji, her feet resting on the boy’s knees as she looked into his eyes. “Let’s be friends!” She proclaimed. She then leaned forward and grabbed a clump of Koji’s hair in her hands pulling at the strands. Koji had no idea what to do. He sat there and let the little girl play with his hair. This girl reminded him of someone. Her odd nature and insane nicknames sparked something in his mind. He just couldn't think of who it was that he was reminded of. He pondered on the thoughts for a few seconds but each time he seemed to get close to anything it slipped away. Instead Koji turned his attention back towards the girl playing with his hair. Koji’s instincts seemed to be telling him to trust the girl. Koji decided that he should follow those instincts. They had not led him astray so far.

“Okay,” Koji said, smiling. “let’s be friends. But I think I need to know your name first.” Koji giggled. The situation was just so ridiculous. This girl just reminded him of someone so much. He just couldn't place her.

“It’s Yachiru, Ko-Ko.” the girl answered in a dreamy voice. She was fully focused on Koji’s hair.

“Okay. I guess I’ll call you Ru then.” Koji proclaimed as he hesitantly brought his own hands up and began to plait Ru’s hair, attempting to make numerous pink plaits all over her head. It would be nice to have a friend his own age. Or one that looked his age. As the pair played with each others hair they were oblivious to the stares that they were on the receiving end of. Yumichika and Ikkaku were looking in disbelief at the pair. What the hell had Koji got himself into. Kenpachi let a half smile onto his face. It was not often that Yachiru talked to anyone in a serious fashion. The girl had been through too much to trust easily and so often used insults and immaturity to defend herself. Kenpachi knew that she must have seen something in the boy. Something to show that he would understand her. He didn't know what it was but Yachiru had always had good judgement. Kenpachi therefore knew that this boy was one to watch. He was sure that he would do great things.

* * *

Day five was here and Koji was very nervous. His heart was pounding in his chest his breath coming more quickly then it ought to. The room was packed with people, all of them pushing and shoving, attempting to get the best view. Koji saw so many faces and so many sets of eyes directed at him. He was beginning to panic slightly. The fight was soon about to start and Koji could not get control of himself. There were just too many people here.

‘Breath little one. Breath.’ the firm and calm voice of Tatsuo filled his head. ‘Koji. Koji. Koji!’ Tatsuo almost shouted. It caught Koji’s attention. The loud noise snapping him out of his panic filled haze. ‘That’s it little one.’ Tatsuo said soothingly. ‘You can do this Koji. You are strong, you are powerful, you are worthy.’ Koji felt a lump form in his throat as Tatsuo spoke. ‘You can do this Koji. I believe in you. Now show all those people just what you can do.’ Koji smiled a small, tear filled smile. He knew that Tatsuo was right. Koji could do this. He would show everyone just how worthy he truly was.

It was Koji’s second and final match of the day and of the tournament. He could do this. He needed to do this. His first match of the day had been an hour previously and it had been much more trying then the previous three. He had had to use far quicker steps to avoid the blows that came thick and fast and each block had been jolting and had a large amount of force behind it. The girl had been stronger then any of his other opponents and Koji had used several powerful Kido spells to detain her. The spar had lasted around half an hour and although Koji had won it had been a test not to show a greater level of power then he was willing to. He knew that many of the techniques that he and Tatsuo had practiced were not things that a sixth year student should be able to do. Many third or fourth seats may have not been able to do what Koji could. Koji was sure that he should not let all his powers be known. He needed to keep a few tricks up his sleeve. He didn't want his competition knowing all his moves.

The spar that Koji was currently about to engage in had an opponent that was in a similar position as Koji. The boy had won all his matches and seemed to be a force to be reckoned with. Koji was, however, not surprised. The young man’s reputation had been amazing even when Koji had started the academy. Koji also reassured himself that he had already managed to previously beat the boy even if it had only been in an informal situation. He knew that Kaien Shiba was a strong opponent but Koji could do this. Tatsuo believed in him and so he believed in himself. Koji gave a bow to Shiba and the older boy gave one in return. This was going to be exiting.

Koji and Shiba stood and stared at each other for the first few seconds. Both knew the threat that their opponent was and neither wanted to leave themselves open by making the first move. It was all a game of nerves. It was about who could go the longest without attacking the other. Koji met the older boy’s eyes daring him to make the first move. Koji sure as hell wasn't going to. Several more seconds passed and neither moved. The spectators held their breath as they waited for either of the students to attack. The atmosphere was tense. Everyone on the edges of their seat. All breaths held as they watched the two. Koji smiled at the older boy again attempting to egg him on. It worked.

Shiba lunged at Koji, his blade slicing through the air. Koji leant to the side. He felt the air ripple past him at the power of the blade. He quickly brought his own blade up that was easily blocked by the other. The two remained in close contact, both only knocking and blocking each others blows. It was more playing then anything else. Both increased the force of their blows, daring the other to up their game. Stronger and stronger the blows became and as they did each of the students became less and less in control of their spiritual pressure. The two moved faster and faster. Each blow and block precise. One slip and the game would be done. Many of the younger students in the room were having trouble with the amount of spiritual pressure that saturated the room and could barely see anything due to the speed at which the pair were moving.

Koji knew that this fight was getting nowhere. The boy had been watching the older boy’s movement pattern. The slices: Right, Right, Left then Right, Right, Right. In that small gap of the first sequence, the second between which Shiba changed from right to left there was an opening. A small one but an opening none the less. Koji counted as the movements continued. Right, the blow connected with Tatsuo, Left, Koji dogged to the side. He then brought his feet from the floor and into the air. He pulled them up and they connected with Shiba’s chest. With a hard push Shiba was thrown backwards several feet. Koji jumped back further away from the older boy, putting more distance between them. As he watched the boy steady himself, Koji quickly threw a binding kido at the boy but it was easily dogged. Shiba made quick steps forwards. Koji sent another kido towards the older boy’s chest. Shiba twisted his body to the side and attempted to dodge the spell. However he didn't move quickly enough. The spell connected with Shiba’s left arm. The arm fell limply by his side but Shiba ignored it. He instead continued forward his right arm gripping tightly to his sword.

Koji admired the strength that the older boy was showing. Koji had sent a numbing spell at the boys arm. He would no longer be able to use the arm at all until the spell wore off. It would only hang there uselessly. Due to the power of the spell that Koji had cast it would probably take around two hours for the spell to wear off. Koji flash stepped to the other side of the dojo only to find Shiba fast on his heels. Shiba spent the next few minutes following Koji around the room as Koji sent multiple Kido spells at the older boy that was chasing him. It felt like a more dangerous version of tag. Suddenly Shiba dropped to the floor. His Zanpakto clattering to the floor. Koji stood dumbfounded for several seconds as he looked to the older boy. Was he giving up? No, he wouldn't do that. He was not the type to give up.

“Bakudo twenty one, Sekienton.” A red cloud of smoke erupted into existence like an angry red spot and quickly filled the room. Shiba’s spiritual pressure vanished and Koji cursed. He quickly repressed his own spiritual pressure and flash stepped to the other side of the room. He had to keep himself invisible in every way possible. He quieted his breathing and kept himself on his toes. Shiba would expect him to panic, expect him to run wildly through the smoke. Koji was not allowed to let that happen. Koji strained his hearing listening for the slightest movement. He closed his eyes pushed his presence outside of his body. It felt as though he was spreading all his senses across the room in a thin layer. The feeling was strange. Koji pushed further, harder trying to feel more. Suddenly his senses became overwhelmed by an explosion of sensations. He was bombarded by every spirit in the room. He could feel all of them pulsing, like prickles on his skin. Each breath they took and each movement they made. It was overwhelming and yet it felt so pure. Like he was touching the sun. He may be burning up but it was still so beautiful. Each spirit had a different feel, a different colour, a different smell, a different taste. He could loose himself in the feeling of each and every one of them.

‘Concentrate Koji.’ a sharp voice broke through his thoughts as he lost himself in the taste of peach. ‘You have to find him.’ Koji reluctantly drew himself back and concentrated on a smaller area around himself. It was a struggle not to just feel each of the spirits. They were all so unique. He needed to get control of himself. He needed to find Shiba, otherwise what was the point if being here. Tatsuo was right. Koji felt around himself. Nothing. He pushed a little wider, still nothing. Wider and wider, still nothing. A little more. There! A slight tickle. A small tingle. He could feel him. If Koji hadn't been concentrating so hard he would have overlooked it. It was small but it was there. A small white light, just a little spark. Koji could taste mango. He had found him. He tiptoed his way towards the older boy, the flavour lighting up his tongue. Koji gently lifted Tatsuo, staying as silent as possible. He quickly lunged and felt his blade sink into the soft flesh of a body. The smoke quickly cleared as the match ended and Koji looked down at Shiba. The boy had a large cut on his chest and a grin on his face.

“Well done kid. Well done.” the older boy said grinning. Koji offered his hand and pulled the boy up. As their skin touched the taste of mango intensified and Koji’s nose filled with the sweet smell of the fruit. As soon as the older boy was standing Koji dropped his hand, shocked at the intense taste that filled his mouth. “You won kid. Go celebrate with your friends.” Shiba said kindly as he pointed to the other side of the dojo. He saw Kisuke and Shinji giving him proud smiles. Yumichika and Ikkaku were standing close by waving at the boy. Koji finally noticed Ru who was quickly making her way towards Koji, her pink hair bouncing with every step that she took. The Lieutenant reached Koji and dropped something into his hands, her eyes lighting up in a smile. Koji looked down to see a small bag of brightly coloured sweets.

“Well done Ko-Ko.” she said with giggle before skipping off back towards Kenpachi. Koji watched her go with a fond smile before running over to Kisuke and Shinji. The two captains picked up the small boy into their arms and hugged him tightly, singing his praises. They were telling him how proud they were and how well he had done. Koji could feel his face aching at the smile that currently resided on his face. As the taste of green apple and blueberry mingled on his tongue Koji didn't think that he could be any happier. 


	7. Chapter 7

Koji was bouncing up and down on his heels in excitement. Today was his first trip into the human world. It had been two weeks since the competition and Koji had been receiving a lot of attention from those around the school, both the students and the teachers. A lot of them seemed to want to be his friends and yet Koji could tell that they were not being genuine. The students wanted nothing more than to use him for his skills and the important friends that they knew Koji had. It was very stressing to have the constant attention. This was why today was even more exiting. It was a break from all the stress that the academy currently presented. Koji should have, in theory, already been to the human world many times but due to his intense training and rapid movement up through the school he had missed out on all the trips there. Today’s trip was to be one that fourth years and upwards could opt to participate in. Many had not wanted to go due to the looming pressure of exams. They believed that there was no point in wasting their time in the human world when they could spend that time revising instead. Koji however was fully prepared for the exams, having studied hard and stayed up for nights on end in preparation. He also still had enough time to ensure that anything he was unsure of could be looked at.

Koji had taken Shinji’s advice and decided that he should give himself a break and have some fun. As well as school work Koji had also been learning about his ability to detect, what appeared to be, the spiritual energy of others through taste, touch and smell. There appeared to be no record of the phenomena occurring before. In all the books that Koji had read and all the research he had done on the matter there had been nothing. He seemed to be one of kind. Therefore the last few weeks had been spent attempting to control his ability. With Tatsuo’s help Koji had been able to control his ability. Koji still tasted and smelled the aura of those around him but he had not become overwhelmed by it for around a week.

Koji’s first few days after his discovery had been very difficult. After his winning fight the adrenalin had worn off and his senses had become bombarded by too many smells and too many tastes. He felt as though he had been about to be sick. He had run from the room gaining many strange looks and raising many questions. Kisuke and Shinji had quickly followed after him, finding him curled up in his room attempting to calm himself. They had got nothing from the boy who had forced them away and then spent the next three days locked up in his room, refusing to see anyone. Koji had been utterly overwhelmed as he seemed to be able to feel everyone around him within a five hundred meter radius. It had been impossible to go to class due to the sheer number of people. Therefore for the three days in which Koji kept himself secluded he and Tatsuo had trained day and night to gain a control of his ability. Koji had, after those three days been comfortable enough to go outside. Koji was able to sense those people that he wanted to and block out those that he did not.

Koji looked around him and saw around twenty people standing in his vicinity. All of these people Koji had never spoken to before. That still did not matter to him though. He was going to enjoy today, he just knew it. The group had their attention drawn towards three teachers standing before them as they started to talk to the group about the procedure for the day. Due to the small number of students present they were to be split into three groups, with a sensei each. Each student would be given a buddy, the younger students being paired with the older ones where they could be. As the teacher said this he read out a list of names and who they were to be paired with. The name Hanatarō Yamada was called with Koji’s. Koji had no idea who that was. He stood still, watching all of the other students before him find their pairs. A shy boy who looked to be around thirteen approached Koji. The boy had black hair that fell limply around his face and his grey eyes were downcast as he made his way towards Koji.

“You’re Koji right?” the boy questioned in a nervous voice. It sounded almost like a whine. Koji gave a nod and a bright smile to the boy in response. “I’m Hanatarō Yamada, fourth year. Please just call me Hanatarō” the boy said hesitantly. Again Koji gave a nod.

“Nice to meet you Hanatarō.” Koji said enthusiastically. “It’s my time in the human world today.” Koji exclaimed excitedly before asking “What about you? Have you been to the human world before?” Hanatarō seemed to shift nervously as Koji spoke. His whole body seemed to scream out as to how uncomfortable he was. He raised his head, only slightly, before responding to Koji’s questions.

“No, I-I-I’ve never been before. I didn't go on any of the previous missions but my sensei told me that I needed to get more field experience to be able to pass the exams.” Koji wanted to sigh but kept the happy smile on his face. It seemed that the boy was going to be in a nervous mood for the whole trip but Koji would not let that put a downer on his day. So as the group were led though the portal and into the world of the living Koji kept an eye on the boy before him while keeping a large grin on his face.

The group appeared on the outskirts of a small town. They had been told that it was called Bakewell and resided in a place called England. Koji wasn't sure why but he found the name amusing. An image of a tart with a cherry on top came into his head every time he thought about it. His mind was weird at times. Koji looked around seeing many quaint little houses littered the area as well as a large church that peaked above the rest of the buildings. According to reports several hollows had been detected in the area therefore making it necessary for a group to come and deal with the problem. Due to the small number of hollows present and the fact that they were very low level ones the academy had decided to make a mission out of it. Each group of around six students would go with a teacher and scout a certain area of the town. They would then destroy any hollows that they found there under the supervision of their teacher.

Koji and his group made their way towards the left, splitting from the others. Koji’s eyes flicked around the area. Vigilance was something that should never be underestimated. The group walked for several minutes staring at the sights and marvelling at the sounds. There were many living people walking around the area and even if the students had heard about them before several of them had never seen them. Koji watched as a pair of teenage looking boys went around attempting to scare the humans, or at least get a reaction out of them. The laughed as they repeatedly shouted boo in the face of an old man only for there to be no reaction.

Koji suddenly froze as he felt an evil presence close by, the taste of rotting meat filled his mouth and a look of disgust appeared on his face at the taste. He quickly looked to the teacher before him and saw a look of similar disgust and understanding in the man’s eyes. The teacher raised a hand, stopping the group and drawing their attention back towards him. Several of the group removed their swords as they saw their Sensei give out his warning. Koji and another sixth year were the only two in the group with physical manifestations of their Zanpakto. The other students, however, had training swords that were sharp and ready for battle but lacked the Zanpakto spirit within them. Koji left Tatsuo in his sheath. He was not yet ready for battle and to remove his sword without the promise of a battle was unfair to Tatsuo.

As the group stood stock still a large humanoid hollow made its way towards the group, a loud groan escaping from behind it’s mask. The hollow towered above the group at maybe ten feet tall, all black except for the white mask that adorned its face. Koji looked up at it in a combination of sadness and disgust. The thing may be powerful but it reeked of darkness and staggered around, its body seemed full of pain. Koji wished to end the things suffering, it was not right for any being to suffer. Koji felt compassion for the beast before him.

Koji raised his hand and cast a binding kido at the creature before him. A yellow rope sped from his hand, hitting the hollow straight in the chest and wrapping tightly around it, causing it to fall with a crash as it knocked over several trees in its fall. Koji, paying no attention to the others around him leapt forward looking at the hollow in empathy. Whispering an apology, not for what he was about to do but for what the hollow had suffered, he gently slid Tatsuo from his sheath. He thrust the Zanpakto through the hollow’s mask and watched as the mask cracked as the hollow preceded to disintegrate into nothing but dust. Koji was glad that the being was finally at peace now.

The students from the academy watched Koji with slight awe in their eyes. None of them had even thought to attack the hollow, several frozen in fear at the sight of it and yet the boy before them who looked so small had taken it down in an instance. It had looked so easy for him. The power that he radiated was phenomenal. The aim of his kido had been perfect as it had wound its way around the creature and his speed of movement had been exceptional. Hanatarō’s jaw had dropped the moment the boy beside him had moved. He had seen the boy in his spars against the other sixth years but that had been in controlled conditions. It was nothing like the situation that they were in right now.

A loud screech rippled through the air and the students turned their head to the noise. The sensei leapt forward to Koji and placed a hand on his shoulder before he could move. Koji understood, the man wanted to let the other students have a go at this one. Koji blocked out the foul taste that filled his mouth as the hollow approached and instead he looked towards the other students to see what they would do. Hanatarō looked on in fear, unsure as of what to do. The hollow was a large of last one and was quickly approaching. A sudden voice broke through the silence of the group.

“Okay I want three of you on the left and two of you with me on the right.” Koji looked up to the man by his shoulder with a question in his eyes. The man gave him a nod and Koji grinned. He quickly grabbed Hanatarō and pulled him towards the right, standing behind the boy that had become their faux leader. With that the other three quickly moved to the left, the girl at the front of the group giving a nod to the boy showing that they were ready.

“Make a circle around the thing. Each of you about an arms length from each other. When I give the call you're all to strike. As soon as you've hit pull back and reform. Do not let your guard down, even for a second. Now go!” the boy exclaimed. The group did as he said and within seconds the hollow was down. The group of students looked to each other with grins on their face. Together they had taken down a hollow. It was a great feeling. The day continued in a similar way as the group made their way through the village. Each member of their group, at the nudging of the teacher, took control of the defeat of a hollow. Koji watched with a mixture of pride and fondness for the shy boy as Hanatarō managed to stutter his way through his commands. He did however lead a successful attack, even if he had looked like he was about to piss himself.

Thought the day the group all felt connected and as they walked they joked and chatted. Koji learned that the group was made up of two students from each year. Hanatarō and a girl by the name of Ren were the two forth years. Koji and the boy who had taken the initial control for the attacks, Atio, were the sixth years of the group. The two boys that Koji had seen playing with the old man before were fifth years called Hikaru and Kazumi. The two were close friends and had know each other before the academy and had joined together. Koji smiled at the group. This must be what it felt like to be a division. All of its members smiling and happy in the knowledge that they would all protect each other. However if it wasn't then Koji was determined to make it that way. Everyone should know what it was like to be part of a team.

As the mission seemed to be coming to its close and the group seemed to be celebrating Koji froze. His body became cold, a shiver running down his spine. He could see his breaths coming out in puffs before him. Sooner then he could blink a large cloaked being appeared before him. The others scattered, ready to reform and attack but Koji couldn’t move. It was as though ice was running through his veins as he looked at the creature before him. Koji watched as hand, rotting and decrepit extended towards him. He suddenly felt as though all the air had left his lungs. A strangled gasp left his mouth as the creature’s hand continued to extend. Koji’s vision went black and his ears couldn't hear the shouts that filled the area. The face of an old man appeared before Koji’s unseeing eyes. A man with a long white beard and a glint in his eyes. Koji felt shock, fear, anger. Emotions that weren't his own swirled around in his head. Suddenly a green flash filled his vision followed by darkness. Koji screamed and his body fell to the floor with a thump.

* * *

A pounding head and a parched throat woke Koji. He attempted to push himself up only to be treated by an ache that seemed to radiate through his whole body. Koji gave out a groan at the pain but tried again anyway. Koji felt a light hand on his chest pushing him back down. His eyes flickered towards the source of the touch only to see the Captain of the fourth division standing over him with a stern but kind look on her face.

“Don’t overexert yourself Koji. I think it best if you go back to sleep.” she said gently. A soothing yellow light engulfed him and Koji felt a wave of tiredness engulf him as the light spread across his body. Koji’s eyelids began to feel heavy and with a weak smile they closed shut, dragging Koji, again, into the realm of Morpheus.

The next time Koji woke his headache was gone and his body felt much more relaxed. As he sat up for the second time he managed to do so without out any issues. His breath came easily and his eyes took in the sight before him. On a small table by the bed was a pile of what appeared to be sweets along with a few other things littered through the pile. Koji even saw a small teddy bear in the mix. There were also several chairs littered around the single room that Koji was in. In one of them was sitting a sleeping Shinji, his head tilted back and a small line of saliva making its way from his open mouth. His long hair was ruffled and his clothes disheveled. In another chair on the other side of the bed, as far away from Shinji as possible, sat Hanatarō. The boy seemed oblivious to Koji’s conscious state, instead staring at the sleeping Captain across from him.

Koji was drawn from his observations as the door slid open to reveal Kisuke. The man appeared to have prominent black bags under his eyes. His hair was limp and flopped into his eyes. He looked up to see Koji sitting up in the bed. His jaw dropped and then a wide grin split his face as rushed over to the bed. Hanatarō who had been watching the second Captain’s entrance followed the man’s gaze and his eyes widened as he saw Koji’s upright position. Kisuke quickly places the three bottles of water in his hands onto the bed side table and pulled Koji into a hug. As he let go he gave another wide smile before moving to Shinji’s side and shoving the man in the arm. The blonde gave out a startled grunt as his eyes flickered open. He gave a glare to Kisuke before his eyes flickered over to see Koji sitting up. He then quickly adopted the position that Kisuke had just occupied, pulling Koji into his arms.

“I’ll go and find Captain Unnahana.” Kisuke said breaking through the silence that fell in the room. “She’ll want to know that you've finally woken up.” With that the Captain rushed from the room. Koji’s brow furrowed at his friend’s comment. What did he mean finally? He surely hadn't been sleep for that long.

“How…” Koji’s voice was raspy as he tried to speak. Shinji quickly passed him one of the bottles of water that Kisuke had abandoned. Koji ripped the lid off before gulping greedily at the water. After a few seconds Shinji wrestled the water from his hands telling him he would be sick if he drank too much. After a few seconds of pouting Koji finally spoke again. “How long have I been unconscious?” he managed to get out in a croaky voice. Shinji looked to him, concern in his eyes.

“Two weeks Koji. We were all so worried.” Said worry was audible in the blonde’s tone. Koji’s jaw dropped at the revelation. Two weeks! That was a very long time. However he managed to drag himself from this news and pay attention as Shinji began to speak again. “You remember how you got here?” Koji shook his head and Shinji’s ayes darkened. “Do you remember the cloaked hollow?” After a few seconds Koji nodded. He shivered at the memory. He had felt so utterly helpless. “Well that was what we call an Akuma.” Shinji said seriously. Koji didn't think he'd ever heard the man sound so somber. “They are not normal hollows. They are far more powerful than any that an academy student and even a fully qualified Shinigami should have to face. It’s a miracle that you didn't die, little one.” Shinji said. The fear and pain visible in his eyes. “They are an abomination. Something that should not exist. They are the result of the twisting of a certain type of soul. Souls that have high and controlled spiritual pressure in life not only in death. When these types of souls do not wish to move on they remain stuck in the world for too long and turn into those things. They are so rare to see that there has not been one seen in the last fifty years.” Shinji sighed a slight sadness marring his already tired face. “The monster can suck the spiritual pressure from Shinigami and the soul from any humans. That is the reason for your weakened state. It may still take time for you to gather your true strength.

“Also…” Shinji said hesitantly. He walked over to the other side of the room and picked up something that Koji could not see. He clutched the object close to his chest and walked back towards Koji. He handed the object back to Koji and the boy saw that it was mirror. He tilted his head at the blonde who only nodded to the object in his hands. Koji lifted the mirror to his face and as he saw his reflection he gasped in shock and nearly dropped the thing. However he managed to keep it in his hands and looked at himself again and fully examine the image. It seemed as though his entire right eye had turned a milky white. The eye seemingly sucked of all colour. This image before him caused Koji to examine the functionality of his eye. Koji closed his left eye, covering it with his hand and found that his right eye was in fact working perfectly. It seemed that only the colour of the eye had changed. It still made for a terrifying sight though.

“It seems that that is one of the side effects from the attack. We are not sure why it has occurred but it seems that it shall be permanent.” Shinji said with a sigh. It seems that Shinji felt even slightly responsible for the fact the Koji had got hurt on a mission. Seeing this Koji decided that to measure the man was the best policy.

“Don’t worry Shinji, I can still see from it. Plus I think it looks pretty cool.” Koji said with a grin. “I can use it to creep people out.” he said with a small giggle, a twinkle in his eyes. Koji was looking forward to the pranks that he could play on unsuspecting victims. Shinji’s mood lightened slightly at hearing Koji’s laugh fill the room. Kisuke and Captain Unohana entered the room to hear the giggle that Koji emitted.

“It seems you’re feeling better.” Unohana said with a small smile before flitting across the room to examine Koji fully. “It seems that your spiritual pressure is not yet back to full strength, however, you do seem much improved.” the woman said in a business like tone. Before stepping back slightly from the bed. “You shall have to stay here for at least the next three days. We shall see how you are doing then.” Koji stifled a groan. He did so hate not being able to leave the bed. However his instincts told him not to question the Captain before him. The woman was sure to become very scary very quickly. Instead Koji gave the woman a small smile. “I’ll be back to check on you in around an hour. There is a bathroom to your left and I’m sure that the two Captains are perfectly capable of getting you some food if you need it.” With that the woman left the group alone in the room.

Koji looked to the three members of the room before him. He extended his hand out to Kisuke indicating for him to come closer as the man was still standing in the doorway. He embraced the man in another hug before the man returned to his seat.

“So how you feeling alright Koji?” Kisuke asked. Koji gave a nod and a small smile to the man who was looking at him with worried eyes.

“Actually I cant wait to get out of this bed.” Koji said with a cheeky grin. “Im already dreading the boredom that I’ll be going through for the next few days.” Kisuke let out a huffed laugh at the boy’s expression. It seemed that Koji was dreading the thought of the boredom more than the boredom itself. Koji then looked to the other boy in the room. Hanatarō hadn't said a word and had merely been sitting and watching the proceedings. “Hey Hanatarō” Koji said with a smile as the boy’s head whipped up at being addressed. The boy looked nervous and tried to stammer out an answer. “Than you for coming to visit.” Koji happily proclaimed causing the older boy to smile.

“I-It wasn't just me. Quite a few people have been. Some of them left some presents.” the boy said quietly as he pointed to the table that Koji had noticed earlier. Koji felt an odd sense of warmth fill his chest at the fact that people had cared enough to bring him anything. For the next hour the two Captains and the two academy students talked about what had been going on in the world and how the soul society had been faring. After the hour had passed Unhand returned with a tray of food. She placed the tray down before ordering the other three from the room. Koji waved them goodbye before he began to slowly eat the meal before him. He hadn't realised how hungry he was until he started eating. His speed increased with each mouthful he took. As he swallowed the last mouthful he felt his eyes grow heavy. He moved his tray off the bed before his eyes fully shut and he fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

Koji was finally out of the fourth division and was free to do as he pleased. He had spent the last four days going over his school work and receiving visitors. Both Yumi and Ikkaku had visited along with the other four members, excluding Hanatarō who had been in his group on the mission into the human world. The four had seemed apologetic that they had not helped Koji more. They had told him that after Koji had passed out the teacher had asked two of them to watch Koji and the others to go for help. The teacher had then attacks the hooded hollow. After managing to keep the thing at bay for several minutes the other teachers had turned up and along with several sixth years. The group had attacked the hollow and had finally killed it after many strikes and a large amount of effort. He had fully reassured the four that they were not to blame an that he blamed them for nothing.

Koji had missed three weeks of lessons and yet it was his time with Tatsuo that he was really missing. He had not had a training session with his Zanpakto for such a long time. Therefore the day after he was released from Unohana’s care he decided that he would dedicate the day to spending time with Tatsuo. It was a Saturday after all and so the day was all his. The Zanpakto was getting restless and they needed the day to practice.

Koji spent several hours with Tatsuo simply flowing through the motions. Words passed between the two as Koji lost himself in his own mind. He let all the stress and tension flow from him in a steady stream. Koji felt calm, serene almost, as Tatsuo gently cut through the air. The Zanpakto gave him gentle pointers telling him how to improve his swings and where to aim. As the time ticked by Tatsuo and Koji felt power flow through them. The two becoming one the more time they spent together. As Koji felt the connection overwhelm his he stopped his swings and sheathed Tatsuo, he needed full calm to release any more of Tatsuo’s potential powers. His eyes flickered shut as he fully entered his inner world, the connection becoming even stronger.

Koji’s eyes flickered open to see Tatsuo standing before him. The man’s ginger hair was wild around his face, a serious look on his face. Koji could feel the power from the man as he gave him a large smile. He felt joy at their closeness. The man gave a respectful nod to Koji. Koji wanted to laugh at the man before him, Tatsuo often enjoyed being utterly over dramatic. Especially when he was teaching what he considered to be something of importance.

‘We shall be gaining our Shikai today little one. You are ready. All you need to do is release my full power. Call my name. You know me well enough for that.’ Tatsuo said with determination glimmering in his eyes. Koji felt pride swell as the sword spoke. Tatsuo had faith in him. ‘Be your true self so that I may be mine little one.’ The ginger said with a small smile. Koji’s eyes flickered open to reveal the training grounds before him. They were sixth year only training grounds that were surrounded by a protective field, ensuring that no one was hurt by the advanced techniques that the sixth years were using.

As Koji sat he gently removed Tatsuo from his sheath and ran a finger gently along the blade. Koji felt his spiritual pressure flare at the touch and he sighed in satisfaction at the feeling. Koji stood, Tatsuo grasped tightly in his right hand. Koji calmed himself as he let the power of his Zanpakto flow through him. He felt his spiritual pressure flare as Tatsuo accepted the grip of Koji on his hilt. Koji let the power flow as he kept his breath steady and his stance strong. He felt Tatsuo’s light caress of his mind. With Tatsuo Koji felt whole. He felt at peace and at one with the Zanpakto. Unbeknownst to Koji his eyes were sparkling more vividly than usual. His green eye twinkling like an emerald and the white like freshly fallen snow. No-one seeing Koji would ever be able to doubt his power.

“Inferno, Tatsuo” Koji whispered. The dragon hilt of the Zanpakto rapidly slithered its way down the blade with a snick as metal met meal. As the dragon’s roaring mouth reached the orange tip of the Zanpakto the tip also reached Koji’s left hand. As the tip of the blade touched Koji’s hand a bright orange flame burst into life, the fire working its way down the dragons body from its mouth. A ball of flame appeared in Koji’s hand and as he thrust both hand and sword forward. A wall of fire appeared before him continuing its forward motion. The flames adopted the shape of a dragon, its mouth seeking something to consume. The dragon continued its search until Koji brought the flames back towards himself, the heat being absorbed by Tatsuo through both the blade and his own skin.

Koji repeated the motion, the fire spreading again and again until his skin was hot to the touch and burned a bright and angry red. Koji sealed Tatsuo back into his original form, the dragon slithering back to the hilt. Koji breathed deeply. The stress of the fire on his system had been straining. Tatsuo in his released form was a force seeking to destroy anything in his path. To go unsatisfied meant that the force behind the attacks was thrown back into Koji’s body. The feeling may not be nice but Koji knew that he needed to do it. He needed to train to become worthy of Tatsuo and become as strong as he could. It seemed that in his released form that Tatsuo was a force to be reckoned with. It seemed that the Zanpakto could not be truly satisfied without an enemy in his sights and Koji wished to give him that. It was the least he could do.


	8. Chapter 8

Koji stood with the rest of the sixth years, many of them throwing odd glances at him. They had not seen him since the hollow incident and the fact that one of his eyes looked as though it had had all the colour sucked out of it did not help. Yumi and Ikkaku stood to his right, the pair sending glares to many of the others in the room. They had been considerable worried for Koji over the past few weeks and so were feeling overly protective of the boy. Today the group of sixth years were to have yet another faux assessment. Much like the tournament it had nothing to do with winning or loosing but merely what those watching thought of their performances. Today’s activities were not a competition but more of an individual display. The group were in the sixth year training grounds. Before them stood fifteen people. Twelve of them had Captains uniforms on, the other three teachers from the academy. Koji gave a small smile to those that he recognised before turning his attention to his teachers.

The plan for the day was for each of the students to attempt to show the company before them their most advanced move, whether it be Kido spells, Zanpakto releases or flash step. Their aim was to impress the Captains. Of course the Captains and other students would all be at a safe distance from the individual preforming. The list of names was read out with the order that they would be in. Koji’s was the first name to be read out. He breathed deeply and calmed himself. This would all be fine. It was going to be fine. He had been in significantly worse situations before. The rest of the occupants of the room walked to the seating area at the side of the training area. Koji stayed standing where he was. He rested his hand on Tatsuo’s handle and gave another deep breath.

For several seconds the occupants of the room watched Koji in curiosity. They wanted to see if the boy was as skilled with control of his Zanpakto as he had seemed to be with the other arts that the academy had taught him. If the boy could fight well and yet had no control over his Zanpakto then he would never become as strong as they hoped he would be. He may be fast and be able to think on his feet but he would never be powerful enough to become the warrior that they all wanted. Koji gently slid Tatsuo from his sheath and held the Zanpakto before him. The weight felt warm in his hands and his eyes sparkled with determination. He closed his eyes feeling the connection spark between the sword and the boy. He let the feeling of connection spread through him as he breathed more deeply.

“Inferno, Tatsuo.” Koji whispered. This time Koji’s voice was barely there. He was sure that none of the others in the training room could have possibly heard him. A dragon of fire shot from the blade in a great roar, aimed towards the group sitting and watching. The ball of fire in Koji’s hand also blazed. Light and heat filled the room causing many eyes to widen at the side. Just as the front row of seats were sure that they were about to be engulfed by the large dragon Koji pulled Tatsuo back. He let the flames wrap around him, heating his skin. The flames licked at him, as though growling in frustration at having no-one to engulf. Koji soothed the angry sword and the flames receded. The flames gently wrapped around his arms, lightly caressing them, before vanishing.

Koji breathed a sigh of relief as Tatsuo finally receded. He knew that the sword was aggravated at having no target. Koji was sure that he would not be able to use his Shikai again without giving Tatsuo an opponent. The sword grew more and more violent with each release that went without an opponent. The flames became more angry, it’s burn more strong. Koji knew that his skin was red and shiny with sweat and as he gently sheathed the sword he felt a wave of exhaustion hit him. Having the backlash from the Zanpakto was draining. He managed to drag his body to his seat where he was given a glass of water by Yumi. He gulped it down quickly before taking a deep breath. He settled his thundering heart and turned his attention to the rest of the members of the group. As the day passed Koji felt more and more tired, his eyes, on several occasions, flickering shut without his consent. However he did manage to watch the other nineteen students show what they could do. It seemed that only one other member of the group had manage to master their Shikai. Of course it was Kaien Shiba. As the Shiba heir finished his demonstration Koji threw the older boy a bright smile and received a much smaller one in return.

As the day came to a close Koji slowly made his way back to his room. His feet dragged slightly as he walked and he failed to notice the stares that were being thrown at him. It seemed that the rest of the academy students were both in awe and in fear of his ability. It may have been many hours since Koji had shown the group his Shikai and yet it was still fresh in their minds. The boy’s power had been thick in the air and his eyes had glowed so strongly they all became entranced by the sight. It was like nothing they had ever seen before.

* * *

A frustrated smile curled up Koji’s face as he sat on his bed, a pile of letters surrounding him. There was only one week left before the exams and before Koji would become fully qualified as a shinigami. After Koji had finished his exams he had the month before the next academy year began to apply to whichever division he so chose. He could apply for four positions within any of the divisions that had openings. When all four applications had been responded to Koji would be required to choose which out of the ones that had accepted him he wanted to take a place in. If, in the rare situation, that none of the applications were accepted then four more could be sent out. There had never been a case where one of these second four applications had been denied. The letters that littered the bed were from captains of many of the divisions offering him places within their divisions.

Koji looked over all of the letters again, his eyes flickering from one to another to another. He may feel happy but he also felt slightly overwhelmed at the amount of offers that were before him. There were twelve letters before him each offering him a place within their division if he so wished for it. The lowest position he had been offered was as a tenth seat from Kempachi Zaraki as a tenth seat. Koji knew that the man had no real interest in him and had most likely offered him the place due to Ru’s nagging. The girl had visited Koji several times and on one notable occasion had followed Koji around his classes pulling pranks on anyone that she considered to be looking at her the wrong way. The highest offer had been from the captain of the tenth division, Isshin Shiba, who had offered him the position of lieutenant. That in and of itself had throughly shocked Koji. He wasn't sure that he was ready to have that kind of power. He'd barely been here for any time at all so it seemed insane for Koji to comprehend a position of such power. Koji also had before him: a third seat offer, three fourth seat offers, three fifth seat offers, two sixth seat offers and one seventh seat offer. All the positions were high ranked and well regarded. The offers, for Koji, were utterly astounding.

Due to Koji’s overwhelmed state he decided that the best option was to go to someone for advice. He had spent the whole of yesterday sitting in a similar position reading through the letters again and again with no joy on deciding which division to join. It was a nightmare. Koji gathered the letters in a pile and stuffed them into his bag, he then pulled the bag over his shoulder and walked from his room, locking the door behind him. He walked at a sedate pace from the academy grounds, making the short walk to the fifth division. As it was a Sunday the streets were quiet. Koji walked past several bars which seemed to have the only sign of life around the division with many raucous laughs and drunken shouts being heard through their doors. Koji continued his journey towards the centre of the division without event. Koji walked into the command centre of the division in which the offices of the higher ups were. As Koji was making his way towards Shinji’s office he was stopped by the voice breaking through the quite of the corridor.

“You are Koji, correct?” the voice questioned. Koji turned around to see a man standing before him. The man seemed to be in his late twenties, messy brown hair adorned his head and think black framed glasses framed his brown eyes. A traditional Shinigami uniform along with a Lieutenant crest strapped around his arm. Koji had seen the man around before, when visiting Shinji, but he had never talked to him. Koji gave a small nod before tilting his head in curiosity. What did the man want? “A pleasure to finally meet you Koji. I’m Lieutenant Souskue Aizen. I do so hope to see you in my division in the coming weeks.” the man said with a smile. The man may seem cheerful but Koji got a bad feeling from the man. The taste that he got from the man was sweet. Too sweet. Koji pulled himself back, the sweetness overwhelming him. It was the strongest and most sickly flavour that Koji had had from any individual. “So Koji what is it that finds you in such a place?” the man said with a large smile when Koji gave no sign of responding to the man’s earlier comments.

“I’m here to see Shinji.” Koji said with a curious look. What did this man want? Why was he stopping Koji when the man knew that there was only one reason that Koji was going to be here. There was no-one else that he could be visiting.

“Ah I see.” the Lieutenant said, his tone jovial. “”I saw you in your spar against Kaien Shiba.” the man said. Koji had to wonder where this conversation was going. “I would love if you would do me the pleasure of sparing with me sometime.” again the man smiled, Koji felt a shiver run down his spine as the look was directed it him. “It would be very enjoyable.” Aizen’s hand moved to rest on the hilt of his Zanpakto and Koji narrowed his eyes, placing his own hand on Tatsuo’s hilt. The Lieutenant’s gaze remained calm and friendly even as the tension between the two rose. Koji felt the cloying pressure of the man’s spiritual pressure as it began to increase. Koji released some of his own in response, not willing to let the man threaten him in any way.

Suddenly a door was pushed open, further down the corridor and the face of a scowling Shinji was revealed. The man looked disgruntled and a little annoyed as his eyes made contact with his Lieutenant before him. He made a few steps forward the scowl deepening as he saw who stood before Aizen. He was not pleased to his his Lieutenant talking to Koji.

“Aizen, what are you doing?” the Captain said, his own hand reaching for the hilt of his sword as he strode forward to protect his young friend.

“I was only talking to young Koji here Captain.” the man said simply. This only forced Shinji’s scowl to deepen. He did not wish for Aizen to be alone with Koji, even if the boy could take care of himself.

“Well I am now here to relieve you of such a duty.” the blonde Captain said, the venom audible in his voice. “Come now Koji. Let’s go to my office.” Koji scuttled his way towards the older man, avoiding any further contact with Aizen as he made his way toward’s Shinji’s office.

The talk in Shinji’s office lasted around an hour. Shinji had explained Kisuke’s and his own reluctance for Koji to join their divisions. There was the definite possibility that others would look down on him and view him as using his connections with the two captains to gain a good rank within the soul society. They had both sent out their offers as a mere formality but felt that it best for Koji not to join either of their divisions. Shinji also suggested that the same view may be taken for both the second and the eleventh division as Koji had been seen in the company of both captains and with members of their division. Koji had told Shinji of how he felt unprepared to enter into a division as a Lieutenant when he had no experience in any of the divisions. Shinji assured Koji that he was indeed ready for such responsibility but told him that he understood why he felt as he did. He said that there may be a possibility that the members of the division may pick up on this nervousness and not regard him as the leader that they needed.

That left Koji with six options. Shinji explained to Koji the the fourth division was one of healing, the ninth division was in place to protect the Seireitei from any an all attacks and the thirteenth division were often given sections of the living world to guard over if there was an increase in hollow activities. Beyond that the other divisions were dependent on what it was that their captains wanted from them. This further eliminated the ninth and the seventh divisions for Koji as he neither wanted to be a medic or forced to stay in the Seireitei for the rest of his existence. He wanted to explore both the human world and the world of the souls. He didn't want to be restricted in such a way. That left Koji with five options and a lot of confusion. Shinji gave Koji some explanation as to the characteristics of each captain in his shortening list leaving the rest to Koji. It was his own decision to make.

* * *

Koji groaned as he heard a knock at the door. His eyes opened and he looked around the room blearily. The clock on his side table read seven o'clock and Koji let out another groan. Who was at the door on the one day that Koji could have to rest? It was Sunday morning and both Tatsuo and Koji agreed that they could sleep in today. Koji pulled himself from the bed and rubbed his eyes with his palms. His feet gently pattered towards the door. He pulled open the door to reveal the faces of five people all crammed into the doorway. Koji had half a mind to slam the door in their faces but suppressed the temptation. He raised a weary eyebrow, questioning the group before him. One of the group began to stammer out a string of incoherent sounds to the boy before them. Koji was dressed in nothing more than a pair of green boxer shorts and his eyes were filled with killing intent. Even without his Zanpakto the annoyance that Koji was feeling was reflected through the spiritual pressure that was leaking through the room and down the corridor. One of the other boys near the back of the group pushed the stuttering mess out of the way and greeted Koji with a smile.

“Koji. Hi” the boy said brightly. His smile was too large and Koji could tell he was attempting to appear calm even though he was nervous. Koji recognised the boy before him. He was Atio something-or-other. They had been on the mission in the human world together. Koji sighed. He rubbed his eyes again before responding to the boy’s greeting.

“Good Morning Atio.” he said, his voice sounding rough from sleep. “What do you want?” Koji bluntly questioned. It was too early to do anything other than attempt to understand why the hell he had been woken up at such a stupid time.

“Well…you see.” Atio said rubbing the back of his neck nervously. His blonde hair being ruffled slightly with the movement. “we all saw you at the demonstration the other day and we were wondering if you could help us train…” the older boy said, trailing off. A small smile on his face and a look of hope in his eyes. Koji gave a small smile back. How could he deny a request for help? These people recognised that they needed help and had come to him. It was both a shock and a joy. It seemed that they were finally accepting him.

“Okay” Koji said, the sleepiness having faded from his voice and his form. “Just give me five minutes okay?” he smiled. “I just need to get dressed.” with that Koji shut the door and quickly threw on his uniform before sliding Tatsuo into his belt.

As Koji made his way back into the hallway he led the group down to one of the training dojos. Several had already been filled with students who were busy training for their end of year exams. Koji, on his fourth try, found one that was empty. The group walked inside and knelt before Koji. Koji wanted to laugh at the sight. It was odd to see students that had never liked him suddenly kneeling before him in the utmost respect. Koji spent several seconds feeling awkward before he knelt as well, looking at the five people before him. He started by introducing himself which was met with several chuckles. He then asked for the rest of the group to introduce themselves. There were three boys and two girls in the small group. None of the names that he was told he recognised but he smiled at each of them giving them a nod as they introduced themselves.

“Ummm…okay, well I think we should start off by seeing how well you all know your Zanpakto.” this raised several eyebrows and a few weird looks. One of the girls raised her hand as as Koji gave her a nod she began to speak.

“What do you mean? Our Zanpakto are only tools right? We’re meant to force them to do what they say?” The girl didn't seem to be being aggressive or mocking but was genuinely curious. Koji sighed and brought a hand up to rub his temple. This was going to be harder than he had first anticipated. He thought for a few moments before deciding on a new strategy.

“Okay ignore that. Instead I want you to spend the next hour, let’s say, talking with your Zanpakto.” Koji raised a hand as the girl who had spoken before began to protest. “No, listen to me. The next hour you'll be talking to your Zanpakto. Ask them how they are, tell them of you day, just talk to them.” Koji said with determination. “If, when we finish that you don't feel any different then we’ll do something else. Go on now. Enter your inner world and have a talk. I’ll call you when the hour is over.” Koji said with a small smile. A few members of the room still looked sceptical but they did as Koji said. Koji entered his own inner world and greeted Tatsuo with a hug.

As the hour ended Koji’s eyes flickered open and he looked around the room. All of the others in the room still had their eyes shut, their eyes flickering beneath their lids. Koji called out asking for the group to return to themselves and informing them that their time wake up. Eyes flickered open, a few of them taking longer than others as they exited their inner worlds. The eyes that greeted Koji’s seemed to hold awe and wonder as they opened.

“Wow” Atio said, only above a whisper. “I…I didn't know that I could feel a connection like that.” he murmured, more to himself then to the others. However there were several nods of agreement as they heard the statement. Koji grinned at the words. It seemed that this was working. The rest of the day was spent between sparing and meditating. The connection and understanding of their Zanpakto and their Shinigami growing with each passing hour. As the clock struck one Koji decided that they needed to take a break. Sweaty and red faced the group made their way towards the dining room to have some food. Koji lingered behind the others unsure of how to act with them in a non-lesson environment. However before he could fall any further behind his wrist was grabbed by Atio and he was pulled along to eat with the rest of the group. Koji smiled at the gesture. It seemed that he wasn't such a freak after all.

* * *

Today was the day. It was now or never and Koji felt as though he might faint. Today was the ceremony announcing the new members of each division. Koji would be expected to act as a high ranking member of his chosen division and the pressure of that responsibility was killing him. He breathed deeply trying to calm himself as he looked to the other students beside him. There were three others joining the division with him, one being Atio, the boy that Koji had met on his mission to the world of the living. Atio gave Koji a tense smile, he could tell that the young man was as nervous as he was. Atio had been offered fifteenth seat within the division and had taken up the offer. Koji would be the third seat of the same division. Before Koji stood the only two people that would be above him in his division. His Captain was tall and imposing, even with his grey hair and wrinkled face he still radiated power. He looked regal and sophisticated standing before the gathered group of Shinigami. To the mans right was a much younger man with long black hair, clipped to the side by a decorative head piece demonstrating his nobility. A small smile adorned the man’s gentle face. Koji looked up to the Kuchiki Lord and his heir standing before him and found himself thinking that maybe this wouldn't be as hard as he first assumed.

Koji listened to the procedure as it progressed. Each individual was introduced to the rest of the division that were seated around the rest of the room. Both name and rank were called out to the group before they bowed to the captain and Lieutenant and were seated with the rest of their division. Koji lifted his own head as he heard the captain addressing him.

“Finally I wish to introduce the new third seat of the sixth division, Koji.” the man spoke in a formal tone. Koji made a bow showing the rest of the room his acceptance of the position and his agreement to accept the captain and his Lieutenant as his superiors. Koji then looked up to his new captain, Ginrei Kuchiki and gave the man a small smile. The ceremony had ended and Koji was now officially part of sixth division and proud to be so.

The rest of Koji’s day was spent being introduced to many of the members of his new division. Koji was shown his office and sleeping quarters as well as being introduced to several members of the division. Of course they all knew him due to the introduction that morning but he knew none of them. Koji bowed politely to each member that he met. After the tour was over Koji was left in his room to sort through his things. However the boy was unpacked in the space of minutes due to his small amount of possessions. Due to the time that he had on his hand he made his way out of his room and decided to go exploring. He made his way through the division meeting several eyes and smiling in greeting. Koji finally made his way to one of the numerous dojos that lined the area behind his room.

As Koji entered the faces of around fifty people in the room looked up to him. Many of their eyes narrowed in suspicion. It seemed that they were not too accepting of him. Koji sat down near the back of the room and watched as the group of people before him practiced their Zanjutsu. The group seemed to be having some sort of informal competition. There were around six matches going on at a time. Many spectators cheered each other on. Oohing and aahing at the different skills the fighters showed. Koji watched them with curiosity. It seemed that many had good form and fought well, however they seemed to lack the conviction that they needed. None of the fighters seemed to want to hurt the others, none wanted to kill. It made their attacks weak and easily deflectable. Koji decided, after around half an hour that he had watched for long enough. He stood up and clapped his hands, followed by a loud whistle drawing the group’s attention towards him.

The lessons that Koji had been teaching to his fellow sixth years had massively increased Koji’s confidence. He knew that his opinion was valid and that his work was strong. His own connection with his Zanpakto was solid enough that Koji knew, even if his teaching methods may be questioned, he could demonstrate his strength to any that were to challenge him. Over the past few months it seemed that more and more students had been coming to Koji for advice on how they could improve. Koji had been approached by a ridiculous amount of students over the weeks before exams. All of the sixth years, after seeing the resulting strength gained by those in his first lesson, had asked for help. Koji had been happy to oblige. The boy had learned enough to pass his exams with no effort at all. This therefore meant that he was willing to help anyone that needed it. Hanatarō and several of the boys friends had asked for help as well. Having fourth years approach him lead to fifth years doing the same. On one memorable occasion, two days before exams, Koji had ended up trying to calm ten of his fellow frantic sixth years. As he had finally managed to calm them enough a group of around fifteen fourth and fifth year students had entered the dojo looking as though they were going to pass out. Madness had ensued and in the end all that Koji was able to do was laugh. The group of around twenty five students had spent half an hour yelling at each other in their panic. If Koji could survive through that he could survive through anything.

“Listen up everyone.” Koji called out to the members of his division. Each set of eyes looked to the boy, some with scathing looks and others only with curiosity. “You are fighting well but you are missing something.” Koji proclaimed. This garnered a few glares in his direction. What was such a pipsqueak doing trying to teach them anything? He was still wet behind the ears. He had no right to be their third seat so early out of the academy. “Can any of you tell me why you are fighting?” Koji questioned. Many of the people in the room shuffled nervously, some huffed their amusement but no-one answered Koji’s question. “Anyone? Why is it that you fight?” Koji said more loudly this time. “No? No-one?” Koji sighed at their response. He had expected more out of them.

“To Win!” he all but yelled. “You fight to win. If you don't want to win then what is the point of fighting at all.” Koji exclaimed. “Now, you.” Koji said pointing towards a woman standing in the group. She was a little shorter than average and appeared to be around thirty. However even with her short height she towered above Koji. Her eyes were dark brown and her hair was blonde, flowing to midway down her back. She looked at Koji defiantly. “Attack me.” Koji said. The woman’s eyes changed to confusion as she looked to the boy before him. “Attack me. Now!” Koji growled, determination in his eyes. His tone dangerous.

The woman gave no further thought to her actions before she found herself running forward, drawing her Zanpakto from its sheath. She lunged at Koji, the blade aiming for his heart. Koji easily dodged the blade and watched as it scattered to the floor. The woman picked herself up and as Koji turned to face her she ran forward again. Again Koji dodged. He raised a hand as she readied herself to run forward again, stopping the woman in her tracks.

“An attack needs to have intention behind it. When you attack someone you attack to kill.” Koji said, projecting his voice so that everyone in the room heard him. “It’s that or be killed.” Koji said, a solemn look adorning his face as he spoke. “Now try it again please.” Koji said as he turned his attention back towards the woman who had attacked him. “Run at me as though I’m about to kill you. If you don't stop me then you will die. Put everything you have into it!” Koji said with a slight growl. These people needed to realise that they had the potential to be great if only they found that spark. That spark of power, of determination. Koji would make them see what they were worth. Force them to do all that they could do. The woman ran again. This time Koji could feel the killing intent radiating from her. His words seemed to have worked. The blow was dogged but this time the woman did not fall. Her blows continued swiftly, one after another. Koji dodged each one. Each of the woman’s blows increased in speed as her wish to kill Koji seemed to amplify. Finally Koji removed Tatsuo from his sheath and with one swift blow the woman’s Zanpakto was knocked from her hands.

“Better. Much better.” Koji said with a wide smile. “I could tell that you wanted to kill me that time.” There was no accusation in Koji’s tone, just pride. The woman who had picked up and sheathed her Zanpakto made her way towards Koji. Her eyes looked hard and determined. As she stood before Koji she bowed low for several seconds before raising her head and meeting eyes with the boy before her.

“Thank you sir.” she said, sincerity audible in her tone. “My name is Araya Kimiko and I much appreciate the training sir.” Koji gave an indulgent smile. It seemed he had won over at least one member of his new division.

“It’s Koji, please.” he said gently. “Now I want you all to split into pairs and find that killing intent that’s inside you. Attack as though your life depends on it.” Koji exclaimed. With that the group before him split into twos like a sea parting and began to do as Koji said. Koji flitted around the room going from pair to pair and giving them tips and hints on how to improve. Pairs were swapped several times to see how everyone dealt with different individuals. It was always harder to fight a friend. More and more people began to trickle into the dojo. Seeing the training session they approached Koji and requested to join. Of course the boy accepted them warmly, explaining their aims. By the time two hours had passed there were over seventy members of the division present and paying close attention to Koji’s every instruction.

* * *

 

Captain Ginrei Kuchiki looked around the sixth division mess hall in confusion. There were considerably fewer members of his division present then there should have been. He understood that members often came late or skipped their meals but to see nearly half of his division missing was off-putting to sat the least. The Kuchiki Lord raised a brow and quickly finished his meal. He stood and made his way out of the hall and attempted to find the missing half of his division. He checked the larger meeting rooms and offices before making his way towards the dojos. As he neared the largest of the dojos he heard a shout fill the quite. He made his way towards the noise, assuming that that was where the missing division members were. As he entered the dojo he saw around seventy members of his division kneeling and listening to the boy who was kneeling before them in turn.

“I thank you all for today.” he heard the boy speak. Confidence filled his third seat’s tone. The Captain stayed in the shadows himself. No-one seemed to have noticed his appearance so far and he decided not to reveal it as of yet. “I know that as a new member to your division it is hard to be accepted but I promise I will work my hardest to show you all how worthy I am.” the boy promised. He seemed to be utterly sincere in his proposal. Eyes looked at him in respect and awe as he spoke. “Now I know you all have busy schedules, as do I but I propose training sessions like this one on Wednesday afternoons and Sunday mornings.” Koji said with a smile. “Please come and bring anyone that you wish. These sessions are open to anyone from any division.” a few complaints were heard throughout the room but they were quickly halted as Koji raised a hand as well as his voice. “No! I will hear none of this! We are the Gotei thirteen and as such everyone should have an equal chance to learn.” a voice called their complaints out and Koji pointed a finger to the individual. “Yes, even the fourth division.” the raven haired boy said, anger lacing his tone. “All Shinigami are equal and I expect you to respect that. Now please enjoy your evening and spread the word.” With that the small boy bowed to those before him. The rest of the room, as one, bowed to him in return. They then slowly filed out of the room. As the last person left Captain Kuchiki stepped out from his hiding.

“Good Evening Captain Kuchiki.” the boy said with a bow. The man raised a regal eyebrow. It seemed that the boy had know he was there all along. He should not have underestimated the boy, after all he seemed to have gained the respect of half of the division already, after only a day on the job. Koji had finished the academy in less than a year. A record in the history of the soul society. It was why he had offered the boy a place in his division.

“Good Evening Koji.” the humour was plain in the man’s voice. “It seems you're already taking over my division.” a small smirk appeared on his face. Koji gave a grin in return. “Is it wise to mix the divisions? They always fight. I’m not sure if you can change that.” Koji’s grin only widened as his Captain spoke.

“You’re not stopping me though?” the boy questioned. The Captain gently shook his head in the negative. Koji gave out a small giggle in response. “Thats good. I promise you the training will be a lot of fun.” with that the boy skipped away leaving an amused and slightly bewildered captain behind him. The boy was going to be a handful. He was going to bring the Seireitei kicking and screaming into a more modern era.


	9. Chapter 9

It was Sunday morning and Koji stood looking over the gathered people before him. He was shocked at the number that were there. The dojo was an area meant to hold the whole division but there seemed to be far too many people in the cramped room. As Koji looked around he decided that he wasn't so sure this had been a good idea. Koji had required that all of the members of the room to sign in before they enter the dojo. Koji paged through the list of names, glancing between the pages and the members of the room. It seemed that there were around a hundred members of his own division in the area, the rest, around fifty, being made up of people from other divisions. Koji had seen several people that he knew in the room. Both Yumi and Ikkaku had come. He had asked them to come, personally, as he had been sure that there would be almost no-one from other divisions to turn up. Koji had also seen Hanatarō who had turned up with another member of the fourth division. Koji sighed. He was not sure how he was going to control this number of people in such a small space.

“Attention please.” Koji said. However this did little to stop the low rumble of conversation. “Attention please!” Koji said again, more loudly this time. People’s attention turned towards him and after several minutes of shushing and people nudging their friends to be quite there was silence. Koji steadied himself before beginning to speak again. “Hello everyone. I thank you for coming today, although there are so many of you I’m not sure what to do.” a light chuckle filled the room as he said this. “I think the best thing to do first would be to split yourselves into groups.” everyone looked towards Koji in interest. “Can anyone who is an unranked officer please stand by the back wall.” Koji said as he pointed towards the back of the room. “Anyone a twentieth seat to sixth seat, including both, please stand to my right and anyone a higher rank than that please stand to my left.” As he finished there was a large commotion. People moved quickly around the room, pushing and shoving to try and find their place. As the room settled down Koji looked around the room. There were four people standing to Koji’s left. Two were from his own division. To Koji’s right stood around fifty people and the rest stood by the back wall.

“Okay, now I want everyone who was at the training session on Wednesday to stand in the centre of the room.” Both members of his own division to his left moved to stand in the middle along with ten from his right and around fifty from the back. It seemed that almost all the members from the last training session were in attendance. The group stood in the middle looking slightly awkward under the others scrutiny. “You two,” Koji said to the people on his left. “stay where you are.” Koji hummed slightly before coming to a decision. Koji spoke to the two higher seated officers in his own division. Shiemi Ton was his fourth seat, a blonde woman, who looked around fifteen. She seemed mild mannered and agreeable enough. However according to all reports the girl was a terror when angered. Yuuko Maris was his fifth seat. He was a ruggedly handsome thirty something looking man. Black hair and matching eyes. Koji drew both of their attentions towards him.“Shiemi, Yuuko can you come and stand back to where you were before please.” he said with a slight smile. “The rest of you, I want around three or four of you to group up with one of the people in the middle. They will then explain to you what it is that we did last session. If there are any questions please raise your hand and I will come to you as quickly as I can. If you run out of space or the room is too noisy please feel free to use any of the other dojos or you can sit outside. Now off you go.”

Koji then turned his attention to the four people standing on his left, giving them a wide and reassuring smile. He explained to them the basic principle of the previous lesson to the two new students and asked them both if they understood the concept. They both nodded saying that they had had the ideas explained to them before. Koji gave a wider smile, showing his appreciation and then asked for them to both introduce themselves and state their position within their divisions, if they didn't mind of course. The two were sisters, Isane and Kiyone Kotetsu. Isane was fourth seat of the fourth division and Kiyone was fifth seat of the thirteenth division. Isane had been asked to attended at the request of her Captain and she had dragged her younger sister along with her. Koji gave a small huff of laughter at the scowl that Kiyone had given her sister at the mention of the force necessary to get her to attend. If the blush was anything to go by she was embarrassed. Koji asked them to assist him with monitoring the rest of the people in the vicinity, along with Shiemi and Yuuko. The five then started to wonder around the groups of students explaining where necessary and helping people see the truth behind their reasoning for battle. After around an hour Koji called the group back into the dojo, telling them to remain in their groups as they returned.

“Now I hope you all understand what it is we are trying to do here. Are there anymore questions before we start our next part of training?” Koji waited for several seconds for a response “Any at all. Don’t be shy. There are no stupid questions.” Koji waited for several more before a small hand in the middle of the room raised. “Yes you there.” Koji smiled as he pointed to the young man before him.

“Well sir.” the boy said in a shaky voice. “I was wondering how we are meant to get this killer instinct. I don't feel like a killer sir.” the boy said with a slight tremor in his voice.

“Good question….sorry what’s your name?” Koji questioned

“Kaiba Oda sir.” the boy replied, head down.

“It’s Koji, please, I am no sir. That applies to all of you, it’s just Koji. Now back to Kaiba’s question.” the boy flushed lightly as Koji said his name. Koji therefore turned his attention to the rest of the room to save the boy the embarrassment. “I know for those of you who have never fought in a real battle that it’s difficult to understand this determination to kill. Now I myself have only ever killed a few hollows but I know that my Zanpakto would never obey my commands if they were not said with conviction.” Koji said truthfully. “Now there must be someone or something in this world that you all dislike correct?” a few nods and murmurs filled the room. “Now that thing could be a human, a soul, a hollow, maybe even a food” several huffs of laughter filled the room at the last one. “but I am sure that you all know the feeling of hatred?” louder murmurs of agreement filled the room this time. “I want you take that anger, that hatred, that disgust and control it. Those feelings are what you need to use. Be it dislike for the officer ranked higher than you or for the green pepper in your lunch, those feelings are what you need to use. Even the smallest spark of anger can grow and grow to become a roaring fire.” Every person in the room seemed enthralled by Koji’s speech. “You can either grow that spark, twist it to your own will and use it for your own gain or you can let it go out of your control and in the end it will control you. You will be burnt” Koji finished solemnly.

“Now if there are no more questions?” Koji left a pause and when no more hands were raised he continued. “I’ll explain to you what we are going to do next.” Koji gave a bright grin. “I know this is a little unorthodox but I want you to fight without your Zanpakto for the rest of the session. I want you to keep that same killing mentality but `I want you to do it without a weapon. I want you to remember that your Zanpakto can only be as strong as you and that training by yourself is just as important as training together.” Koji was pleased to see that there was no protests from the group. It seemed that they were learning to trust what he said.

“I would like you all to remain in your groups as of now. I will swap some of you around at some later point.” Koji said with a small smile. “Now I want you, in your groups, to practice what it is that you have learnt. Myself, Shiemi, Yuuko, Isane and Kiyone” Koji indicated to the man and the women standing next to him. “will come around and monitor your progress. I’m also going to come around and give you a number. There will be three numbers and these will determine which training session you come to next week. Number two will be on Wednesday afternoon at one o’clock till around four, number one will be Wednesday evening at six until nine. Finally will be group three on Sunday running from seven. I am unsure of the finish time as it will depend on the number of people that turn up. However in your groups now take turns attacking each other. If anyone is injured stop immediately” Koji said seriously. “but you still need to want to kill your enemy. Now off you go.” Koji said with a smile and a clap.

Koji let the groups disperse and then began to flit around the room and the rest of the areas in which the groups had decided to practice. He started numbering each individual. He needed only a few seconds to asses their power and ability Those with the highest level of ability were marked as group one. They would be the ones that Koji would be training to a much higher level. Group two were ones that understood and could in practice fight with the intent to kill but needed more polishing to realise their full power. Group three were those that just did not feel the killing intent. They may have trained and mastered the requirements to get through the academy and yet they still just didn't have the conviction that they needed.

As the two hour passed Koji again called a stop to the session. He called the group back to the dojo, thanking them all for their attendance and telling them to return to the session that they had been ascribed to. He also said that if any of them had an issues or questions that they had now or that came to them during the week that they were free to come to him and ask. His door was always open to them.

* * *

Koji’s face dropped, his eyes filled with tears. They were gone. His two best friends, the people that had first found him in this world were gone. A scream rippled through the air as Koji’s knees gave way. The boy’s sobs rippled through the air. They were gone. They were gone. Koji’s fragile control of his spiritual pressure was lost as the words whipped around his head. His power exploded out from him, swirling and saturating the air. Koji’s emotions were uncontrollable. It was not possible that Kisuke and Shinji had betrayed the soul society. It wasn't possible at all. Koji’s sorrow twisted and he felt the sparks of anger on the edges of his subconscious. He screamed again, louder this time. Koji’s world had been turned upside down in the space of a few seconds. He had no idea what to do. This was all just too much. Koji’s spiritual pressure whipped around lashing out at everything around him.

Koji lost himself in his emotions. Not caring what it was that happened to him. It was all over. There was nothing else to do. Koji felt several presences around him but he didn't care. They could kill him or be killed. He just wanted his friends back. No his family, they were his family. Koji felt hands on his shoulders and ignored them, utterly.

“Koji please.” the voice begged, but Koji continued to struggle. “It’s okay Koji, it’s all going to be okay.” the voice said again as the arms tightened around him. Koji’s tears streamed more heavily down his face.

“No! It’s not! It’s not going to be okay!” the boy shouted but this time he didn't struggle he let himself be rocked gently by the arms that surrounded him. He let himself feel comfort in them and let himself taste the dark chocolate taste that surrounded him. The strokes on his back soothed him and slowly his anger began to fade and he became the small sobbing boy that he was and not the power that could destroy everything around him. For several minutes Koji clung to Yoruichi like a life line as the woman gently soothed him.

“It’s okay Koji, they're okay.” Koji looked up at the woman through tearful eyes. What did she mean they were okay. Yoruichi answered his questioning gaze “They’re in the human world Koji. They are safe and they sent me to give you this.” The woman handed Koji a think envelope. “It’s to tell you what happened and it also tells you how to get in contact with them.” Koji looked at her with wide eyes as she spoke. “I’m sorry Koji but I have to go. They can’t find me here. I have risked too much already.” the woman quickly changed back into a cat before scampering away as though the hounds of hell were on its heels.

Koji looked at the letter in his hands. He stared at it without opening it for several minutes. He didn't know if he could face what the letter contained. What would be the version of the truth that he read. The truth told to the members of the Gotei 13 was that Kisuke had betrayed them all. The man had experimented on eight members of the soul society, turning them into monsters. Kisuke had then been arrested along with Tessai Tsukabishi, the head of the Kido Korps, who had been assisting Kisuke in his experiments. The two had then been freed by a masked Yoruichi. The group had escaped along with what was left of the eight members that they had experimented on. Koji did not want to believe that at all. He couldn't believe that Kisuke would do anything like that.

Finally Koji ripped open the letter and his eyes quickly scanned the pages before him. For the next half hour Koji sat and read through the letter over and over again. The letter told him that in fact it had been Aizen that had cased the change in the Captains and Lieutenants. Kisuke explained that they had been forced into a state where they became part hollow and part Shinigami. At the current moment they were struggling to control their nature but they were working their way towards it. Kisuke had been trying cure them with Tessai but the two had been arrested before they could complete their work. Yoruichi had rescued the pair before their execution and the trio had helped the rest of the newly named Visored to escape. Kisuke told him that the group was in a small town in Japan know as Karakura town. He also told him that he loved him and that he should burn the letter. After Koji had finally tore himself away from the precious pages he reluctantly set them alight, watching them slowly turn to ash in his hands.

Koji gently pushed himself up, tears still streaked down his face and made his way back towards his own division. He walked for around half an hour before there were any signs of life. He reached an area with crowded small streets. Koji’s eyes were unseeing of the stares and his ears unhearing of the whispers that greeted him as he walked. Many of the souls that lived in the are looked on in fear and curiosity as the armed boy walked through the streets. Koji’s hair was a mess, filled with twigs and leaves. His bare feet were bleeding, his steps leaving bloody marks on the ground as he walked. His clothes were so ripped and muddy that they were not recognisable as the uniform of a Shinigami. Koji had no idea where he was. He had run from the Seireitei as fast as his flash step had allowed and had only stopped when he had found an area with no signs of life. Koji was simply following the direction that he knew he had walked in.

As Koji continued his journey a ball bounced into his path. He looked in curiosity at the thing before he picked it up and examined it. It was about the size of a football and was an off white colour, covered in dust. Koji examined the ball intently but found nothing more as he stared at it.

“Hey kid” a voice called out, seemingly oblivious of Koji’s status. Koji lifted his head and looked in the direction of it. A boy with bright red hair that was in a ponytail was glaring at him. “Yeah you.” the boy said angrily. “Can I have my ball back?” he huffed. It seemed he was frustrated at Koji’s lack of response. Koji looked from the ball to the boy and then back again. The boy seemed to grow more angry at Koji. “Are you thick or something?!” the boy exclaimed. “Give me my ball!” he yelled. A young girl appeared behind the shouting boy and laid a hand on his shoulder.

“Renji it’s not worth it” she said in a timid voice. The boy scowled, giving Koji a full glare. Koji looked to the boy and to the ball again before finally breaking out of his daze.

“I’m sorry.” Koji said with a croak. He cleared his throat and then spoke again. “Here you can have your ball back.” as he said this he threw the ball back to the red headed boy before continuing his walk. However as he continued the girl came towards Koji, curiosity in her eyes. She was as tall as Koji, if not slightly taller. She stood before him blocking his path and forcing Koji’s eyes to look up to her. The girl had black hair and sparkling brown eyes that looked to him in concern.

“Are you alright kid?” the girl asked quietly. Koji’s eyes met hers and he titled his head to the side. His thoughts were still scattered and his mind filled with grief. He was unsure who this girl was. Why was she talking to him? “Why don’t you come with us and we can clean you up and give you some food. How does that sound?” the girl spoke softly. Koji gave a small nod to the girl. He was willing to take any help that was given to him. The red haired boy, Renji, began to protest but the girl raised her hand silencing him. The girl took Koji’s hand and led him down one of the alleyways and into a ramshackle house that seemed to be kept together only by the boards of wood that were nailed to its sides. Renji grumbled all the way about not being able to trust strange kids in the street. Koji was given clean clothes and as he put them on the girl handed him a small amount of sweets that Koji quickly gobbled up. He then collapsed into one of the make shift beds and quickly lost himself to sleep.

* * *

Koji woke the next morning to find himself curled into a small ball on a bed he knew was not his own. He heard voices whispering in the room. Koji felt around for Tatsuo and didn't find him. He shot up out of the almost hitting his head on the bunk above his. He was met with the sight of the red headed kid from yesterday and two other kids sitting on the floor. In their hands they held Tatsuo. Koji felt rage and panic welling up inside him as he saw his Zanpakto in the hands of the boys.

“Give him back.” Koji growled out, his voice radiating killer intent. Two of the boys jumped in shock at seeing him awake but Renji just gave him a glare.

“What do you mean him? It’s a sword. It can only be an it” the boy said with a laugh, not at all phased by the glare that Koji was aiming at him. Koji stood up and with a growl he pulled Tatsuo into his arms. He gently ran his hand up and down the sheath of the Zanpakto before strapping him onto his hip.

“He” Koji growled out “is called Tatsuo and does not appreciated being called an it.” Renji looked at the boy as though he had lost his rocker. Then a sudden realisation seemed to dawn on his face. The only swords that had names were not just swords. The boy was so protective of the sword. It only seemed logical to assume that he was not just a sword. Trying to defuse the situation Koji breathed deeply before speaking again. With Tatsuo back by his side all his anger had left him. “I’m sorry. Tatsuo is very precious to me.” Koji said with a small smile. “Thank you very much for your help but I really need to go.” However as Koji finished the girl from yesterday walked in.

“Oh you're awake.” the girl said brightly and Koji gave her a nod. “I hope you slept well?” another nod. “Well now that you seem a little more levelheaded I think that I can tell you my name. I’m Rukia and this,” she said pointing to the red head “is Renji. What’s your name?” the girl asked. Koji gave a hitched breath before replying.

“Koji. My name is Koji.” Koji replied. “I also really need to go.” Koji said quickly. However as he saw the disappointed look on the girl’s face he faltered. “I can come back tomorrow?” he questioned and smiled at the girl’s enthusiastic nod. “I’ll try and bring some food.” he said with a smile. Before leaving the ramshackle house and then flash stepping back to his division.

* * *

Koji had cancelled the training session that had been scheduled for that evening, instead keeping his promise to visit Rukia and Renji. He packed a large amount of food in his bag. Some bread, some fruit, some boiled eggs in a box and also a lot of sweets. Tatsuo was securely strapped to his side, although he had forgone the Shinigami uniform in favour of some more casual clothes. He entered the run down shack with a knock on the wooden board that guarded the entrance and called out a greeting. The people in the room looked towards the noise. Rukia gave a wave while Renji merely let out a grumble. Koji gave a small wave before he shrugged the bag off his shoulders and opened it. 

  
“I brought you all some food.” Koji said with a smile. Everyone in the room whipped their heads around as Koji began to empty the bag and its contents onto the small wooden table that acted as the only flat surface. As he finished emptying the bag he saw the hungry eyes of the kids in the room fix on the food. However before they could lunge for the food Renji stood before them.  
  
“First we need to split the food.” the boy said, standing as the leader of the group. “I’ll do it.” he sat before the table and began to split the food into seven piles. Koji commented that he didn't need any of the food. Renji gave the boy a raised eyebrow before making the six piles into seven. When he was done he called the group forward and each rapidly began to eat their given portions. They seemed like starving animals. Koji vowed to bring them food as often as he could. They had saved him when he was in need and he would save them in return. He gave a fond smile as he watched the children eat their fill for the first time in a long time.

* * *

Koji had been drowning his sorrows by visiting Rukia and Reni on a regular basis. He turned up with food on a regular basis for the group but Koji seemed to click more with the two that he had first met. The pair seemed to balance each other out perfectly. Renji was loud and brash while Rukia was calm and quite. Koji enjoyed simply watching the two interact. Koji arrived at the shack that the group called a home and made his way inside. He was shocked to find the place empty. There was not a soul in the vicinity. Koji walked around the property calling out names and attempting to find any signs of life.

He walked outside and made a circle around the place. Panics beginning to fill his thoughts as he found not a single sign of life. As Koji neared the lake that was by the house he saw something disturbing. Four graves were situated in front of him. Flower wreaths topped the freshly turned mounds of dirt. He ran over to them seeing if there were any further indications of who was buried in the ground. Names were traced in the dirt and Koji’s eyes quickly scanned them. Neither name read Rukia or Renji and Koji breathed a sigh of relief at that. It seemed that the two young souls were still alive. However Koji was still concerned about the fact that he couldn't sense either of them. He had no idea where they were. It was also terrifying to see the graves. How was it that thee four children had died. Had someone killed them? How had the others managed to escape. Koji hoped that Rukia and Renji were okay. Koji was frustrated. He couldn't not search for the pair now. He knew that they would be long gone by now if he couldn't sense them. He would just have to hope that he would find them again, eventually.

Koji lowered his bag to the ground. Food spilled from the top as he set it down. Looking to the graves he fell to his knees, his eyes clouding over at the sight of them. They were so young and their lives should have lasted so much longer. Koji looked to the food on the floor and gently gathered it into his arms. He split the food into four, placing each pile on the graves. At least they wouldn't be hungry now. Koji sat there until the soon set. Staring at the lives ended too soon and letting the tears fall for all his lost friends.

* * *

Koji sat in office combing through the large pile of paper work that had built up on his desk. Due to the enormous amount of people turning up to the training sessions Koji had had to start running more of them. Koji now ran three each on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday, morning, afternoon and evening. He also had an evening session on Fridays. Koji would have around fifty students in each of his classes, each one teaching a different level of skill. Koji required each new student to arrange meeting with his so that he could asses their skill level and place them in the appropriate class. However even with this system there still seemed to be an uncontrollable amount of Shinigami joining the training sessions. Koji was giving up more and more of his free time. He had commitments within the division and also needed to find time to train with Tatsuo. However Koji didn't mind all that much. It didn't matter if he missed sleep and he had little else to do now that he had lost everything. What was there to do with no friends.

As Koji looked to the clock on his wall he stood up and sighed. It was half past six. Koji had his level one class in an hour he needed to freshen up and prepare himself for the session. He made his way out of his office and towards the dojo. It seemed that there were already several people gathered in the area ready for the lesson that Koji was about to teach. Koji had selected the group for Today’s session with careful consideration. All of the members in the group had achieved their Shikai. Koji’s session for today would be helping them to create a better relationship with their Zanpaktos to create a more powerful one.

Koji may have been scorned in the academy for his lack of domination over his Zanpakto and yet Koji knew from the long talks with his Zanpakto that the closer your relationship with your Zanpakto then the more powerful you were. Koji wanted to make Shinigami respect their Zanpakto. The sword was not just a tool to be used. They were friends to be valued. Help that was given freely. Koji knew that it was almost nothing to repay your Zanpakto with your company. It was, after all, rather lonely in your own inner world. Surely you could alleviate that loneliness for even half an hour a day.

Koji walked to the storeroom and opened it to reveal A large collection of mats inside. Koji picked up as many that he could carry and began to arrange them on the floor, side by side. Several of the early arrivals asked if they could assist the boy. It was adorable sight that one so small was carrying such a heavy weight around. They could do nothing but help. With the increased number of people it took only around fifteen minutes for the mats to be laid out. As the group was finishing up Yumi and Ikkaku arrived. Koji gave them a small smile as he greeted them. They walked over to him and the trio began to chat about their day and how they were fairing in their divisions. It was not often that Koji got to speak to the pair due to the fact they were in the eleventh division but he enjoyed spending time with them when he could.

As the clock struck seven Koji ended his conversation and greeted the thirty people that stood before him. He gave them a wide smile, the smile however lacked the exuberance and sincerity that it had once contained. Koji still missed Kisuke and Shinji. He may have Ikkaku and Yumi. He also had Ru’s support when she was around but it wasn't the same. It felt as though he had lost his father twice over. The men left a hole in his life. He wanted, no needed to see them both. Although there were no missions that had come up as of yet. He knew there would be one soon he just had to wait. Koji had also still been unable to locate Rukia and Renji. He knew they were alive but had yet been unable to detect them.

“Good Evening everyone.” Koji steadied himself, it was time to get the big reveal out of the way. He wasn't sure that these Shinigami would take it all too well. “Today we shall be talking to our Zanpakto.” Koji heard several snorts of derision while others only looked at Koji as though he was insane. Koji shook his head. These Shinigami were so narrow minded. “I know some of you may have only interacted with your Zanpakto spirit to fight or to improve your skills but there are other times when you should be interacting with them.” more confused looked were aimed at Koji. “How many of you have ever chatted with your Zanpakto.” that earned a few laughs that were quickly silenced as they saw the serious look on Koji’s face. “If you don't take this seriously I suggest that you leave.” Koji said with a slight growl in his voice. Several members of the room looked around. A man at the back of the room shook his head before he turned and left. Three more followed in his footsteps. Koji then looked around the room asking “any more” to be met with head shakes. It seemed that there were some Shinigami that were stuck in their ways and there was nothing that Koji could do about it.

“Right, I want for you all to sit on the mats around the room. Make yourself as comfortable as possible. You can lay, sit, kneel, whatever you like.” Koji said soothingly. “Then I need you all to enter your inner world. I want you to approach your Zanpakto spirit and ask them how they are doing. Nothing else, just that and see how they respond. The continue the conversation as though you would with any of your friends.” Koji seated himself on a mat at the front of the room and gave an indication with his hands for the rest to do the same. “I’m going to set a timer for two hours from now and when you hear it I need you to leave your inner world. We will then see just how much you all have learnt.” Koji said with a small smirk. “I myself will be having a talk with my own Zanpakto so if any of you end your conversations early please sit and wait quietly.” With that Koji closed his eyes only to have them flicker open to see Tatsuo before him.

“How are you?” Koji asked with a giggle before laying down in the leaves that lined the forest floor on which the stood. He looked up to Tatsuo and the man gave a small smile.

‘I am fine little one and you, are you well?’ Koji gave a small shake of his head, a sad look adorning his face. However before he could delve any deeper into his thoughts he found a pile of leaves raining down over his face. A look of confusion filled his face before being filled with a grin. Koji grabbed a handful of leaves and threw them into the air watching as they floated through the air. He looked to Tatsuo, a giggle escaping from his lips.

“Do you want to play Tatsuo?” Koji smiled. He jumped up and looked to the man before him, mischief in his eyes. “Tag.” he laughed as he tapped Tatsuo on the shoulder before quickly taking a few steps back and giving the Zanpakto a large smile. Tatsuo gave a smile in return and quickly lunged at Koji. The boy quickly dodged. The two spent the next hour and a half chasing each other until finally Koji collapsed back onto the leaves and pulled Tatsuo down with him. The Zanpakto huffed as his head hit the floor.

As Tatsuo sat back up Koji let out a laugh. The Zanpakto’s hair was littered with leaves and twigs. Koji stood himself and pulled himself up onto Tatsuo’s shoulders and began to pick the debris from the man’s hair. As Koji was beginning to gently plat his Zanpakto’s hair he heard a loud ringing fill his ears. He sighed and jumped from Tatsuo’s shoulders.

“Sorry Tatsuo. I have to go. Classes to teach.” Koji said with a grin. “I’ll see you later.” Koji’s eyes closed and then opened again to see the Shinigami sitting before him. Many had large grins on their face and others looked thoughtful. Koji’s own face had a small smile on it. It had been good to spend some genuine time with Tatsuo. It had been a long time since he had had that much fun.

“How did it go?” Koji asked. An exited murmur filled the room. “You enjoyed it then.” Many nodded enthusiastically at Koji’s question. “Good. Very good.” Koji smiled. “So I think that we should see if there have been any improvements in your skill. Do I have any volunteers to do a demonstration?” Koji questioned. Several hands rose in the air enthusiastically. Koji selected two members of the room. One a boy that Koji didn't know and the other Isane Kotetsu. The two stood up and Koji cleared the space at the front of the room for them. “Okay I want the two of you to attack each other. Use your Zanpaktos but please do not use Shikai. 3, 2, 1, Go” Koji shouted and watched as the two attacked each other. The differences were visible. Their movements seemed more fluid and they seemed to be more in sync with their Zanpakto.

“Stop!” Koji proclaimed loudly after around ten minutes had passed. The pair sheathed their Zanpakto and turned their attention to Koji, their breaths coming in short puffs and a sheen of sweat making their brows. “You see?” the pair nodded sincerely. They had both found that their movements had been much easier. “Now…” Koji was interrupted from his speech as the sound of footsteps sounded from outside the dojo followed by the slamming open of a door. Koji looked up to see Captain Jushiro Ukitake and Captain Shunsui Kyoraku standing in the entrance of the dojo.

As the group of Shinigami saw the two captains enter the room they rocketed to their feet and bowed respectfully to the two men. Captain Kyoraku gave a dramatic sigh at the motion. The pair then made their way over to Koji, Kyoraku acting as though every step were an immense effort.

“It seems that we’ve found where our division members keep disappearing to.” Captain Kyoraku said with a grin. “We were wondering where they kept wondering off to.” Koji looked to the man with slight trepidation. He hoped that the Captains were not about to force him to cancel his sessions or ban members of their divisions from coming. “Don’t look so worried Koji.” the man said with humour filling his voice. Koji was a little shocked that the man knew his name. “We have noticed the improvement in our division members and merely wanted to come and see who was responsible for it.” the Captain said with a grin.

“Thank you Captain.” Koji said humbly before gathering his courage. Breathing deeply he continued. “However I would appreciate it if you would allow me to finish my lesson before we have our inevitable conversation.” Koji then turned to his dumbfounded students and continued his talk. “As I was saying I wish for you all to talk to your Zanpakto for at least half an hour a day. When I see you next week I will be able to tell how committed you have been. Feel free to practice with other members of the group or members of your division. However I advise against the use of your Shikai until you have practiced with your Zanpakto. The power of your released form will be stronger than you are used to.” Koji said seriously. Koji gave a bow to the group who did so in response. “Now go and I shall see you next week.” calls of thank you Senpai filled the room as the group left. As the last person left Koji turned his attention back towards the two Captains ready to see what it was that they wanted.


	10. Chapter 10

“Good morning Captains.” Koji said with a bow. He knew very little of these two men other than that they were extremely powerful. He did not want to be rude to them and yet he did not want them to shut down his training sessions. He was on a very thin tight rope that he needed to cross with the utmost delicacy. One wrong move and he would fall to his death. Metaphorically speaking of course. “What can I do for you?” He gave a smile to the two men, waiting for their response.

“Well Koji, it seems that there has been some unauthorised training going on.” Captain Ukitake spoke gently. Koji prepared himself to protest. He would not go down without a fight. These training session were all that was left of his sanity. Without them he was not sure he would be able to cope. However before a single word could pass through his lips the Captain raised his hand to silence him. “I am not criticising you Koji. In fact I think your work is admirable. We do not wish you you to stop your sessions, instead we wish to help you with them.” Koji looked is shock at the two men standing before him. His jaw was as wide as his eyes. 

“You…you want to help?” Koji asked, utterly confused. Why would two of the most experienced Captains of the Seireitei want anything to do with the informal training session that he was holding. He had no idea how to respond to the pair. No one ever wanted to help and those that did didn't seem to have very happy endings. 

“Yes we do.” Captain Kyoraku said sounding slightly bored. “Your sessions may be good but they seem to lack both order and resources. You're drowning Koji. You don't have the experience or the time to run all the sessions that you're running and with more and more students turning up for each session we both agreed that you need some help.” the Captain age Koji a small smile as he finished before a wide yawn surged from his mouth. Koji looked at the man and felt anger well up inside of him. The man was acting as though he didn't care. He talked as though his classes were merely the whims of a small child that needed to be controlled. The classes were all Koji had. They were supposed to save lives. None of the pupils he had gained had any real experience of what it was like to be in a real battle. Koji knew he didn't either but he still somehow knew that these people needed his help. War was always on the horizon no matter how safe you may feel.” 

“Inexperienced?” Koji spat out. Anger burned like a flame. Anger at the Captains but also anger at the world. He had lost his friends, he had last his family. All he had left was his teaching and if they took that away from him then he would have nothing. Koji anger was displaced but that didn't stop the turbulent emotions inside him that were suddenly released like a tsunami. “Inexperienced?!” he almost shouted. The two Captains watched with baited breath as the pressure in the room increased. Koji’s eyes sparked as all the pent up rage inside of him was realised. 

“At least I’m doing something!” he yelled, his spiritual pressure swirling around the room. “I’m trying to prepare these people for whatever they may face. The world is _not_ all sunshine and roses.” Koji’s voice only got louder as he lost himself in his anger. “They have no idea what they're doing. They know how to swing a sword but in a real battle they'd be dead in a heartbeat. Do you ever think about that?” Koji’s breath caught in his chest as he realised what he had done. He had just yelled at two of the most powerful men in the soul society. This would not end well. Koji’s eyes widened in panic and his breathing was ragged. 

“I’m so sorry.” Koji panicky voice sounded weak and fragile, even to his own ears. “I-I-I don't know what came over me.” Koji’s eyes fell to the floor and tears began to fill his eyes. “I’m so sorry.” The tears began to fall. His breath hitched in small irregular huffs. “so, so sorry.” Koji continued to murmur quiet apologies, failing to notice the two Captains looks at each other. Captain Ukitake walked forward slowly, as though approaching a scared animal. He knelt before the small boy and pulled him into a hug. Koji stayed stiff for several seconds before he melted into the man’s embrace. 

“It’s okay Koji.” the man said soothingly as he ran his hand up and the small boy’s back. “We’re not mad, we just want to help you.” Captain Ukitake hadn't realised the amount of pressure that the boy had been putting himself under. Koji may be powerful but the loss of Kisuke and Shinji had obviously effected the boy more than he was letting on. “It’ll all be okay Koji.” he soothed. “We’re here for you.” Koji let the tears fall onto the man’s shoulder as his body shook with the strong emotions that ran through him. 

After several minutes Koji managed to regain control of his emotions. He reluctantly pulled away from the embrace. It felt nice to have human contact that wasn't violent. Koji hadn't had such contact since the day that he had found out about Shinji and Kisuke. He didn't realise how much he had missed it. Koji kept his eyes pointed to the floor as his feet stilled on the ground. He was ashamed that he had acted in such a way. It seemed as though he was merely proving his point to them that he was not worthy of leading a horse to water let alone leading any sort of training session. 

“Koji” Captain Ukitake said gently. Koji kept his eyes downturned, refusing to look up and face the disgust that he would meet in the others eyes. Ukitake took Koji’s chin in his hand and pulled the boys chin up, forcing their eyes to meet. “It’s okay Koji. We’re not mad. I know this is important to you and I would never dream of taking it away. All we want to do is make sure that you are teaching people the best that you can. You've done amazingly well so far, we just want to make sure that everyone gets the same opportunity to get the amazing practice that they deserve.” Koji looked to the man before him in awe. How was it that this man could not be angry with what he just said. He had basically just told the Captains that they were useless and that they did nothing to help the members of their divisions. 

“Captain Ukitake” Koji managed to stutter out. 

“Jushiro please Koji.” the Captain said with a friendly smile.

“Ummm…okay, Jushiro.” Koji mumbled out. “I didn't mean it, it…it just came out. I’m sorry.” Koji blushed. His cheeks became a rosy pink. Koji was embarrassed at his outburst. Koji ran a hand through his hair, unsure of what to say next. With the two captains staring at him Koji turned an even darker shade of red. 

“How about we go for a drink?” Captain Kyoraku cut in. “We can talk over a few things in a much more comfortable environment.” with that that the brunette made his way from the dojo, his pink robes swishing behind him. 

After the awkwardness had passed the three had got on very well. Jushiro and the newly dubbed Shunsui had explained the situation more throughly and it seemed much less intrusive than Koji had first thought. The two captains wished to volunteer the time of several of their own division to teach lessons of their own. The lessons could be held either in Koji’s own division or in the division of the member which they were, themselves, from. The two Captains also said they were attempting to convince members of the other divisions to join in with the plan. Many seated members of other divisions seemed to have heard about the teaching but were nervous about the attending the sessions. 

The new plan they arranged was for Koji to train up the highly seated officers from the other divisions while Koji himself would be trained by the two captains. It seemed like a more structured form of training would benefit the students as well as freeing up more of Koji’s time to improve his own skills. It was a plan that all three of them could get on board with. 

* * *

 “Thats it Koji. You need to find it, truly find it.” Koji breathed deeply letting his mind free. He let his spiritual pressure spread throughout the space, filling everything. He felt as though he was floating, his whole body tingled, his senses extended throughout the space. It felt as though he was tasting, touching and smelling the whole universe and nothing at all. Each wave of sense experience washed over him before vanishing. 

“Tatsuo” Koji managed to groan out. He was loosing himself in the wave of felling that engulfed him, pulling him deeper and deeper with each passing second. There was no reply. Koji felt the power radiating from every pore. Koji’s eyes snapped open, the light pouring into his eyes, he was blinded. Koji’s back rose off the sandy ground, his head being dragged through the dirt. A groan escaped his lips as his body spasmed, each nerve lighting up. 

“Come on Koji, you’re almost there, just a little longer.” The tingles got stronger and stronger with each passing second. Koji pushed himself up, the sand between his fingers feeling like stabs of pain through his body. Koji grit his teeth. His tongue stroked along the roof of his mouth, the contours feeling like mountains to the sensitive appendage. A foot scraped across the ground, then another. With all the force he could muster Koji tensed every muscle before shooting up. His legs wobbled with the weight of his own body. Koji’s fingers shot pain up his arm as he gripped Tatsuo’s hilt with all his strength. The world seemed to twist and warp as he stood before the abyss that was his life. Colour became taste and taste became sound. The only constant was Tatsuo, he could feel the sword touching his skin, around him, inside him. He was Tatsuo and Tatsuo was him. 

“Bankai” Koji whispered. His feet raised from the ground, Tatsuo coming down in a sharp arc. Koji’s vision cleared, his senses sharper than they had ever been before. Fire rippled around Koji’s form, wings forming behind him, sparks showering around the room. Koji raised his hands move his head. Koji’s hands held Tatsuo’s blade in the middle of the Zanpakto, the blade biting into the skin. Koji’s eyes glowed dangerously the green speaking like the flames, the white like fresh snow, clear and sharp. Blood trickled from Koji’s palms, beginning to make its way down his forearms. However he did not let go of the blade. Koji’s grip only tightened. Koji suddenly violently ripped his hands across the blade. Blood pattered to the floor like gruesome rain drops. As Koji’s hands reached the end of the blade the Zanpakto shimmered. A second hilt formed and as Koji’s hands continued to part. Blood dribbled from Koji’s form the hilts, staining them a red that shimmered in the fire that consumed his back.

Tatsuo roared, the blades that Koji now held  transformed into raging dragons. The dragons wrapped their sparkling bodies around Tatsuo’s form. They bared their teeth, growling at the strange presence that they found in the room, ready to engulf him in their flames. Koji tested his control. Koji imagined the two dragons moving slightly and the dragons rippled around him, their heads moving in the direction that Koji wished. Koji’s attention was drawn to targets that stood at the other end of the training area. Excitement tingled beneath his skin and he was unsure as to whether the excitement was his own or if it was Tatsuo’s. He supposed it was a mixture of both. The pair were one and the same.      

“Go” Koji whispered and watched with a smile as Tatsuo lunged forward. The two dragons engulfed three targets each in their flames, one after another, meeting each other in the middle of the smouldering mess that had once been the targets. Koji felt a sense of satisfaction ripple through him and knew that Tatsuo was pleased. Koji decided that that was enough for now. The strength used to reach this point was draining him. “Seal” Koji rumbled out. Tatsuo rocketed towards him, the fire red and angry as the two dragons flew at him. It consumed the hilts in Koji’s hands. Koji touch the hilts together, watching as they transformed back into the familiar blade that Koji had come to love. Wings vanished and Koji jolted as his feet hit the ground. 

“Well done Koji, well done.” Jushiro congratulated. It had been six months since his Bankai training with the white haired captain and his brunette companion  He had been doing the training three days a week. It seemed that Koji’s rigorous training regime had finally paid off. He had reached his goal. Koji gave a grin to the man that he now called his friend. However before Koji could let out more than the smile his knees gave way and he collapsed face first into the dirt. His eyes flickered shut as the exhaustion of his Bankai caught up with him.

* * *

Koji knelt, his eyes focused on the wooden floor boards as he attempted to keep his breathing regular. Captain Yamamoto stood before him, the other captains lining the room, all straining intently at Koji’s prostrating form. Koji maintained his position as the white robe was draped around his form, the Iris insignia emblazoned on the back. The taste of chilli, burning hot, danced along Koji’s lounge as Yamamoto’s fingers brushed over his shoulder. The heat of the blast was so intense that it forced the breath out of Koji’s lungs. 

“Captain Koji” Yamamoto said, his voice quite but radiating power. Koji could feel it coming off him in waves. “rise and take your place.” Koji stood on shaky feet, attempting to steady his breath. Koji then made his way to his place between Shunsui and the captain of his old division, captain Kuchiki. “We welcome you, Captain Koji of the seventh division.” At the formal introduction Koji gave a deep bow, his back almost reaching a ninety degree angle to the floor. As he did so the rest of the members of the room gave bows, less deep than Koji’s own. They stood as one, Koji rising with the rest of the group. He was one of them now and as such he was expected to act as such. Koji puffed out his chest and stood tall. Proud to be with the rest of the Captains. “Dismissed” Captain Yamamoto spoke out and the Captains, as one, left the dojo.

Koji felt several pats on his back, many of the Captains congratulating him on his new position as the Captain of the seventh division. Koji heard a growl from the mouth of Captain Zaraki promising that he would find him and fight him till he couldn't stand anymore. Koji wasn't sure whether to be exited or nervous. Captain Isshin Shiba gave Koji a wide grin and an overly large thumbs up. Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi gave a sneer at the boy before walking away. He did not think that Koji was worthy of such a position. Jushiro and Shunsui gave Koji a small smile and a kind word before they left to return to the hectic workloads that were sure to be at their own divisions when they returned. Koji was finally left with only himself and Captain Aizen. The man gave a sly grin to Koji. 

“Congratulations Koji. It seems that you have made much progress since we last saw each other.” The man gave a grin that caused a shiver to run the length of Koji’s body. It was filled with the promise of pain and reflected the hatred that Aizen felt for the boy before him. Koji wanted to vomit as the taste that was too sweet to be any normal food filled his mouth. Koji could say nothing as the man’s eyes ran over his form. He was frozen in place as the man set his hand on the hilt of his sword. As the man’s other hand reached for his sheath Koji felt his entire body tense. 

‘Koji!’ the urgent voice of Tatsuo broke through the haze of sweetness that was overpowering him. ‘Koji, you _have_ to listen to me.’ Koji let out a shuddering breath. He was here, he was listening. He managed to force the muscles in his neck to twitch. It was little more than a spasm of the muscles and yet it was enough. ‘Close your eyes Koji. Now! Do it now!’ Tatsuo sounded scared. There was panic radiating through his tone. Koji had never heard his friend sound so panicked. He snapped his eyes closed as quickly as he could, although his reflexes felt sluggish. He let darkness engulf him. He felt Tatsuo calm. The Zanpakto’s fear was no longer engulfing Koji. ‘Well done Koji. Well done. Now keep them shut little one. We are not yet done.’ Koji let his hand reach for Tatsuo, feeling the reassurance of the Zanpakto. He let the feelings of calm wash over him sapping away both his own and Tatsuo’s doubts. 

“Captain Aizen I think that it is time for us to part.” Koji attempted to deescalate the situation. He had no idea how he was in danger, other than the fact that Tatsuo had told him he was. He didn't want to cause any more tension between him and the other Captain. He was in enough of a precarious situation already. Aizen did not know that Koji knew of his involvement in the banished Captains and Koji wanted to keep it that way. Having been closely involved with the many of those banished Koji was already walking on a tight rope, he did not need any other reasons for people to dislike him. 

Unknown to Koji Captain Aizen was glaring at the boy before him with the force of all the hatred that he had ever felt for anyone. How had the boy known. Aizen had been about to add another addition to his ranks. The boy seemed immensely powerful for his age and it seemed that he would be a great advantage in the upcoming war. It would be bad to have the boy as anything but a minion. Who knew how powerful he may become in the future. But how had the boy known? How had he closed his eyes at just the right moment? How had he managed to be a step ahead. Aizen could not remember the last time there had been a person that had been able to do that. 

“Very well _Captain_ Koji.” Aizen’s tone was filled with bitterness and anger. He could not face the small boy before him. The boy was nothing more than a nuisance. Aizen would not allow him to become a threat. He would not let his plans go haywire because of a soul that appeared from nowhere. He was not that weak. Without another word Aizen walked away from the boy and didn't look back. He was going to have to find a way to eliminate the cockroach that had infested the soul society. 

After several minutes Koji deemed it safe enough to open his eyes. Aizen was no longer in sight and Koji felt as though he had had a lucky escape. He didn't know what would have happened if he had left his eyes open but he knew that it would not have been good. To have Tatsuo so worried it could have been nothing good. After Koji had composed himself, waiting several minutes, he made his way to his own division. The one that he was now a leader of. It was his and he was exited to face the new challenge that was sure to follow. 

* * *

It had been nearly five years since Koji had become the Captain of the seventh division and today was the first time in all those years that he had managed to arrange himself a solo mission that had got approval from Captain Yamamoto. Koji stepped out of the portal and into a small town in the middle of Japan. He let a smile light up his face. Looking around he watched as people walked the streets, men and women alike dressed in Kimonos. He smiled. Koji closed his eyes on the scene, letting his senses spread as he attempted to locate the two people in the world that he wanted to find more than anything in the world. Many tastes bombarded the senses, somehow feeling more substantial, the pulsed with energy with each beat of the humans heart. After ten minutes of searching Koji finally found what he was looking for. The tingle of apple lip up his tongue and Koji had to restrain himself from biting his own tongue at the joy he felt. He wanted more than anything to find the apple he had searched for for so long.

Koji ran off, almost tripping over his own feet with the amount of enthusiasm that he was displaying. He hadn't seen Kisuke, his best friend, a man that was almost his father, in far too long. He didn't want to wait any longer. His feet clattered to a stop before a shop. The shop was of medium size, two stories tall, with sliding doors that were open, inviting people in. Koji made small, nervous steps through the open doors. The walls were lined with various products ranging from various books, different forms of alcohol, bread and a variety of fruits. Koji smiled as he saw several green apples placed in a basket. He picked one up, throwing it in the air before catching it again. He then placed it back in the basket before attempting to find the true apples that he was attempting to find. 

“Now, its not very often that I get a visitor in my shop.” Koji whipped around to see a man standing in the door way. The taste of green apples danced on Koji’s taste buds as the man entered. The man was dressed in a black cloak that came to just below his knees, white diamonds lining robe. His feet were encased in a pair of wooden clogs and on the top of his head sat a green and white stripped one. Koji let out a sob as he saw the figure before him. 

“Kis-k-k-k-ke.” he managed to get out through his sobs. His entire form trembling with emotion. Koji sprinted over to the man before him, his arms wrapping around his waist. His cries were muffled by the material as he buried his face in it. He made some incoherent babble which went unheard by the ex-captain before him. Kisuke brought his own arms down to the small boy that had wrapped himself tightly around him. Kisuke gently picked up the small figure, bringing the boy’s head to rest in the crook of his neck. He spoke gently to the small boy, soothing words coming freely as he rocked him slowly back and forth. After several minutes Kisuke had finally managed to sooth Koji enough that the boy’s sobs had stopped and the tears had dried on his face. Koji looked up into the kind eyes of the friend that he was finally reunited with.

“It’s alright Koji. I’m here. It’s all okay.” Kisuke said. Tears were in his own eyes as he soothed the little boy that was almost his son. He had lost the boy. They had been parted for so long and now they were finally back together. He didn't want to let the boy go. “You know what” Kisuke said in an exited tone. He was attempting to lift the mood, he knew the boy had more than one reason to be here. “I think that we should go and find Shinji. Im sure that he’ll be just as pleased to see you. How does that sound?” Kisuke knew that he was speaking to the boy as though he was a small child but that was what Koji needed right now. He needed the reassurance that he would not e judged. He needed the responsibility that was on his shoulders to be taken away from he him. He was no longer, in that moment, the Captain of the seventh division. Now he was only a small, scared and lonely little boy who needed nothing more than a hug. Koji gave a small mod. He was as desperate to see Shinji as he had been to see Koji.

Kisuke ran a soothing hand through the hair of the boy in his arms before he set about closing the shop. He shut all the doors and windows before putting a closed sign up on the outside, all with Koji still in his arms. He then made his way down the street, flash stepping towards the hideout of the Vizards. A minute later found the pair in front of a large abandoned building. The structure was sound and yet the windows were boarded up. Koji, however, saw none of this as he had kept his head firmly buried in Kisuke’s shoulder. Kisuke made his way though the powerful kido spell that surrounded the compound. As he entered he was met with Mashiro Kuna and Hiyori Sarugaki. 

“What are you doing here?” Hiyori questioned, before pointing at Koji and further demanding “And who the hell is that?” Kisuke ignored the girl before him. She was far too loud for her own good. Most of the time Kisuke didn't understand how it was that Shinji put up with her. He sure as hell couldn't be around her twenty four seven. Pushing through the rest of the Vizards he made his way up the stairs and towards Shinji’s room. Kisuke was far too emotionally drained to be speaking to any of the other people in the building. Kisuke reached Shinji’s door and knocked lightly,waiting for the man to answer. All the while ho continued to delicately rock the small boy in his arm. 

“What do you want?” a voice mumbled out. Kisuke gave no  response. A few seconds ticked by before he knocked again, more harshly this time. Koji gave a small huff of breath of Kisuke’s neck at the movement. From inside the room a loud thump could be heard followed by a murmured complaint. The door swung open after several more seconds to reveal a disheveled Shinji. “What’s going on?” Shinji mumbled out, his voice rough with sleep.

At the sound of Shinji’s voice Koji’s head whipped around to look at the man. His eyes drank in the sight of the man. The man was leaning against the door frame, a pair of shabby, black and white checkered pyjama bottoms hanging loosely around his hips. His hair was much shorter than Koji remembered it being. It Hung down just below his ears. Koji’s eyes locked with the man’s and a small smile graced his face at the look of shock that Shinji was going him. Twisting around in Kisuke’s grip Koji spread his arms wide, inviting his second almost father into a hug. The man needed nothing more. He was stumbling towards Koji, his arms wrapping around the small boy. He scooped the small boy up from Kisuke’s arms clutching him tightly in his arms. He didn't want to let the boy go. Koji wrapped his own arms around the man, tears running down his face. He couldn't believe how amazing it was to feel the arms around him. He didn't realise just how much he had missed both Shinji and Kisuke until the minute that he had been reunited with them. 

Shinji carried the little boy back into the room that he had just left. He placed him on the bed, sitting beside him and clasping one of the boy’s hands in his. Kisuke followed behind them adopting the same position beside Koji, clutching at the boy’s other hand. For the next four hours the three did little more than talk and being to re-familiarise themselves with each other. The three remained holding hands, Koji leaning his head on each of their shoulders, alternatively. None of them were willing to give upon the physical contact that they had missed in the past years. They would make up for it as much as possible, no matter how little time they had. Time passed far too quickly and as the clock struck two Koji knew that he had to leave. He really did not want to. He gave the pair massive hugs, clutching into them, never wanting to let them go.

“Goodbye Captain Koji.” Shinji said with a wide grin. However his tone was bitter sweet. He knew that there was no way to predict the next time he would see the small boy. Koji had already changed so much since they had last seen him. How much more would he have changed before they saw him again. Kisuke ruffled Koji’s hair before placing a soft kiss on the black locks. 

“Goodbye little one. Come back when you can.” Both Kisuke and Shinji watched with sad eyes as the little boy stepped through the portal and returned to the soul society. 


	11. Chapter 11

Years passed and with it so did Koji’s inclusion in the day to day workings of the soul society. Koji was a Captain, a strong one and yet that didn't mean that he had strong connections with anyone. Over time Koji’s social interactions decreased more and more. He had isolated himself. Becoming a Captain so young meant that many of the other Captain’s looked down on him, not deeming him worthy of the position. Of course he was still on cordial terms with Jushiro and Shunsui but the Captains were busy. They had spent a large portion of time training Koji and after that time had finished their work had caught up with them. During those months they had drifted apart and they had never really reconnected to the same level. The two Captains would never be able to replace the family that Koji had lost. He was not willing to let them. 

Yumi and Ikkaku had thrown themselves fully into being members of the eleventh division; their training had been non stop and their schedules full. Of course it had not been as full as Koi’s but due to their hectic lives they had found it harder and harder to find the time to spend time together. They still attended Koji’s training sessions, yearning to learn as much as possible from the Captain. However they just simply had too much else to do. The only person that Koji saw for more than a couple hours a week who was not in his own division was Yachiru. The girl would often spend days with Koji, following him around and stealing his food. The girl seemed to have very little to do with her days and so spent them annoying Koji. Koji secretly loved the company. It was the only thing that stopped him feeling so lonely. He loved the days that they spent together. However he knew that she would never be family. He still felt a hole in his chest where he longed for Shinji and Kisuke. He loved them too much.

Due to Koji’s most recent growth spurt the pink haired girl had started to attempt to spend more of her time clinging to Koji’s back. Koji had grown, slowly but surely over the years, now standing at about four and a half feet. He was still short, very short in fact but he now had just under a foot on Ru. The girl took full advantage of that. Koji had also changed in ways more than just his height. His hair was much longer, falling down to half way down his back in silky locks. Waves fell over his right eye, shadowing the colourless orb that resided in the socket. Contrasting this, the other side of his hair was styled neatly into a french plait. The plait ran from above Koji’s ear, around his head and all the way down his back. Entwined in the plait was a bright white ribbon that matched the white robes that Koji wore over the rest of his clothing. 

Today was a day that Ru had decided to visit Koji. Koji was in his office while the girl fiddled with the neat plait, causing the styled hair to become more and more ruffled with each passing minute. Koji could do little more than sigh. He knew that he would only annoy the girl meaning that she would find even more ways to get back at him, only leading to more frustration. It was pointless to even try. Breaking Koji from his thoughts a fist rapped on his door. 

“Enter” he grumbled out tiredly. The door slid open to reveal his Lieutenant. Koji had chosen the woman straight out of the academy to be in his division and after she had shown potential he had helped to train her up to take the position of Lieutenant after his previous Lieutenant had decided that he wished to move divisions. Yuuka Sano was determined and hard working. Koji was not sure that the girl would ever reach Captain level but he valued her as a Lieutenant. She respected Koji, seeing him as a teacher and a leader. They were not friends and that suited Koji perfectly. 

“Captain.” Yuuka barked out formally. Her voice was apologetic but also that of a soldier, ready to receive her orders. Koji gave a lazy nod to the woman, bidding her to continue. “I’m sorry to disturb you sir but your presence is required at the Academy in fifteen minutes.” Koji sighed. He had forgotten about that. 

“Thank you Yuuka. I’ll make my way over there now” he grimaced. He was exhausted, having already had a training session this morning with the most experienced pupils, as well as one the night before that had been with the least experienced. Both were dangerous sessions. The high level spells with the experienced members and the unpredictability of the less experienced pupils meant that Koji had his work cut out. Today he was there to do a demonstration with the sixth year students. Also present would be any members of the academy that wished to spend their Saturday listening to Koji babble and show off a few moves. If Koji remembered correctly Souske Aizen would be there also. Koji supposed that was the reason that he had blocked it from his memory. He had still not recovered from the situation that he had found himself in the man. Neither of them trusted each other and Koji had not been alone with the man that day many years ago. He was not to be trusted in the slightest. 

“You coming Ru?” Koji queried, raising his visible brow in question, tilting his head to the side. 

“Of course Ko-Ko” she said with a grin, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. “I have nothing else to do.” Koji gave a grin in return as Ru clambered onto his back. He was glad of the company. Koji then made his way out of the office. He was greeted by many of his division members, some giving him a fond smile as they would a little brother. Koji smiled in return, nodding his greeting. As he reached the outer region of the division he flash stepped away to the academy.

Koji pushed his way through the entrance, making his way toward the Dojo that had been designated for the event. He slid the door open and all eyes turned to him. He was still ten minutes early and yet the dojo was filled nearly to the brim with people. Koji sighed, it seemed that this would not be the calm relaxing afternoon that he had hoped it would be. Koji almost scowled as he saw Aizen already standing in the room but he managed to restrain himself. The self satisfied smirk coming from the man helped him steel his will. He would not let the man make a fool of him. 

Koji stood stiffly for the next ten minutes, making only a few comments to Ru as she stood next to him munching on her stolen sweets. Koji wasn't sure where she had got them but he knew for sure that they weren't his. As the time hit one Koji strode forward. The room quieted. Koji watched as all attention in the room snapped to him. He would not let Aizen take control of the situation. Any power he could take was power that he would. Even if it was such a petty move as to talk before the other Captain. He would take it.

However before Koji could say a word he was interrupted. The Dojo door were slid open and two young bickering voices filled the room. Koji’s breath left his chest, his heart hammering as he saw the pair of souls that stood before him. His eyes widened. He froze. As the two souls looked up their actions mirrored Koji’s. Staring was all that they could do.

“Koji.” a pained whisper filled the room. It echoed off the walls as every student held their breath and watched the scene play out. Failing to notice the white Captain’s robe or every set of eyes that focused on her Rukia lunged towards Koji. She tightly wrapped her arms around him.

“We thought you were dead Koji. We all thought that you were dead” she whispered, her face buried into the boy’s shoulder. However her voice increased in volume as shedrew back to look Koji in the face.“We couldn't find you Koji. We looked and looked but couldn't find you.” Her tone was desperate with a hint of anger. Tears were streaming down her face as she shook Koji’s shoulders in frustration. 

“Rukia” Koji managed to choke out, his voice gravely as he tried to contain the tears. “This is not the place” he stuttered out. Clearing his throat he turned to the room full of shocked looking students. “I apologise for the interruption.” Koji forced out. His voice boomed through the quite room. “I am going to have to…to reschedule this demonstration.” he choked out “I am sorry but it seems that other matters have arisen. I will leave you in Captain Aizen’s capable hands.” With that Koji left the room, almost at a run, with Rukia and Renji in tow. He left behind a room of dumbfounded academy students and a scheming Captain.   

* * *

 

Two hours later found Koji curled up in his office, Renji and Rukia snuggled up with him. The three were asleep. They had talked. They had talked for a long time and about a lot of things. They cleared up the issues of their past, finding out what had happened in their lives in the years that they had been apart. It seemed that Rukia and Renji had been getting by. The pair had lost their friends but they had made it through each day. They had finally joined the Academy at the beginning of the year, that had been six months ago. Renji was in the second class and Rukia in the first.

Both Rukia and Renji had been shocked to find out that Koji was a Captain. To find out that he played such a pivotal role in the soul society was scary. Yet it seemed that even with the fear they felt of his power they did not fear him. When they had found out the academy students had broken down at the thought of loosing another friend. They had embraced Koji and hadn't let him go. Just because he was a Captain didn't mean they valued him any less. They had all collapsed to the floor they had huddled together. Finally the exhaustion of the reunion had caught up with them and they had drifted off. For the last half hour they had slept.

However they were woken from their slumber as the door was violently pulled open, a loud bang echoing through the small office. Koji snapped into action before his sleep idled brain caught up to his body. His sword was drawn, pointing at the intruders as he thrust Rukia and Renji behind him. However as his eyes realised what they were seeing a bright blush adorned his cheeks. Tatsuo quickly returned to his sheath. 

“Captain Koji” an amused voice filled the room. Utamara Ibi, Koji’s old Sensei spoke. Behind his stood the Captain of the sixth division, Byakuya Kuchiki. Behind the two men stood a sheepish looking Yuuka. “A pleasure to see you as always Captain.” Ibi smiled, sarcasm audible in his tone. Koji blushed harder. 

“Ibi Sensei.” he mumbled out. “Nice to see you as well…umm…what are you doing here?” he questioned, his hands tugging at his sleeves as he attempted to distract himself from his embarrassment. Ibi laughed. A hearty laugh that made Koji cringe in embarrassment.

“Well when someone comes into my Academy and takes two students away with them I feel that It’s my job to investigate.” The grin never left Ibi’s face as he spoke. He seemed to become more amused the more red that Koji’s face became.

“Ahhh…” Koji managed to get out. Unsure of what he could say to justify himself to the man before him. “Well…you see…” he trailed off. Even though he had not been in the academy in many years the man was still respected by him. He could still, with one look, put fear into Koji’s heart. Although Koji was sure he could be at him in any fight he was still respectful enough to never try it. Ibi Sensei only laughed again.

“While I’m sure you enjoy seeing Captain Koji’s face become an even darker shade of puce, I think it is time that we return to the academy.” Captain Kuchiki snapped out. His voice filled with impatience. Koji blinked, his embarrassment leaving him. HIs mind raced. What was Kuchiki doing here? The man had no business collecting wayward academy students from other divisions. It didn't make any sense. 

“I don’t see what concern that is of yours Captain Kuchiki.” Koji drawled, the accusation clear in his voice. He was not about to let a man that he actively disliked have any reason to take control of the two shinigami that he had just been reunited with. Koji didn't notice the blush that suddenly appeared on Rukia’s face. It was almost as red as the one that had been on his mere minutes ago. 

“Ummm” Rukia muttered out. Koji’s attention was on her in a second. “You see…” she said nervously, averting her eyes from Koji’s. “Captain Kuchiki is going to adopt me into the family” she blurted out. Koji blinked. Then blinked again. What was she talking about? 

“Captain Kuchiki is what?” Koji’s voice was strained as he spoke. The unwillingness to acknowledge the truth behind the girl’s words audible to everyone in the room. 

“He’s going to adopt me into the Kuchiki clan.” Rukia whispered, her head bowed in embarrassment and guilt. Koji noticed that Renji’s mouth was agape. It seemed that this was the first that the red head was hearing of the news as well. 

“Rukia is a promising student and as such I feel that she would make a fine addition to the Kuchiki clan.” Byakuya’s voice was monotonous, no emotion showing in his hard eyes as he spoke. Koji whipped around.

“That is not a valid reason.” Koji’s tone was accusatory. He would not let this man ruin Rukia’s life. “The Kuchiki’s do not allow peasants” the word was sneered. A mockery of what Koji viewed as an archaic view point. “to join their family for no reason. Hisana may have been different but marrying her was difficult enough, your grandfather was outraged…” Koji trailed off. “Oh” Koji let out gently. The word was barely more than a puff of air. He understood. So did Byakuya. The man’s eyes were filled with anger as he realised Koji’s epiphany. The Captain’s spiritual pressure started sending sparks through the air.

“Don’t you dare speak of Hisana like that” he hissed out. His eyes were dangerous and Koji took a step back, forcing Renji and Rukia with him. “Don’t. You. Dare.” Each syllable was a stab of anger toward Koji. With each word the Captain of the sixth division took a step forward. Koji took one back in response. Their eyes met. Emotions swirled in each set. Fear, anger, pain, sorrow, swimming between them like a twisting pool.

“I apologise.” Koji finally submitted. His head bowed, breaking the eye contact as he did so. “I was merely trying to protect a friend” he said gently. “But now I see that you were only trying to do the same.” With that all the fear and anger was gone. Koji’s head snapped up and a wide grin appeared on his face. “It seems I’ll be seeing a lot more of you Captain Kuchiki.” Koji tilted his head childishly, the smile only growing. Byakuya could only sigh. 

* * *

A week later found Koji back in the academy, ready to lead the training session that he had skipped out on seven days prior. Ibi Sensei had not been pleased about the commotion that Koji had caused. He had decided to punish Koji by having  him attend training sessions for the next two months. Of course Koji could have easily overturned the punishment, he was a Captain after all. However the respect and fear that he had of the man meant that he didn’t. It wasn't too bad after all. He would get some sneak peaks on the potential new members of his division. Today also seemed more promising than the last session had been. Instead of Aizen, the Captain of the Eleventh division, Captain Zaraki, was joining Koji in the session. It seemed that Aizen had other things planned for the day. Koji was extremely grateful for that. He was sure that Ibi Sensei had a hand in the arrangement. The man knew of his dislike for the other Captain. It also meant that in all likelihood Ru would be joining them for the day. That was another plus.

Koji entered the dojo to be met with the same wide eyed fascination that had met with his last arrival. However there were two sets that only showed a slight fondness as they noticed his arrival. Rukia gave Koji a small wave and Renji gave him a vicious grin. Koji gave a half smile and a small nod in return before moving to stand next to Captain Zaraki. 

“You still owe me a fight!” the scared Captain growled out. He had a smile on his face that promised pain. Koji felt the man’s spiritual pressure tingle over his skin, the taste of lime dancing on his tongue. Koji let some of the control of his own spiritual pressure slip in return, letting it skitter over the man’s hardened skin. The man’s smile only increased and a small chuckle was issued from his mouth. 

“I didn't think that you would want a repeat of last time.” Koji scoffed cheekily, letting even more of his power ripple across the older Captain’s skin. “I seem to remember that I beat you.” Koji’s sing-song voice called out. A true smile tugging at his lips as he looked at the Captain before him. The man growled and reached for his sword. A smile spreading further across his own face. 

“Kenny” Ru whined out as her head peaked above the man’s shoulders. “We can’t fight Ko-Ko here. We have to teach the silly students.” Zaraki sighed. She was right. His hand dropped from his sword and he turned to look at the brats that sat before him. 

“Later” he muttered under his breath so that only Koji and Ru could hear him. Koji could do nothing more than let out a muffled giggle, that he attempted to cover with his hand. The man never gave up. 

“Alright brats” Zaraki barked out. “Those of you that are here to learn, get over here, now.” His voice held the threat of pain for any that failed to listen. “The rest of you piss off to the back of the Dojo. I don't want to hear a word out of the lot of you.” Feet skittered across the floor, running quickly to obey the intimidating man before them. Koji shock his head, smirking. The man was an amalgamation of ego and narcissism. Koji really wasn't sure how he functioned most of the time.

Koji watched, letting the man order the students around. They were all set to different exercises. Zaraki shouting orders as he set the students to fight each other. After the exercises had been set up Koji walked around the dojo, altering stances, correcting lunges and overall helping to improve the students. As Koji reached the fourth group of students he noticed a boy standing in the group. He was a student that he had heard talk about but due to his busy schedule he had never met in person. Koji watched for several seconds as the boy easily blocked and dodged the blows of his three opponents. However there was something there not quite right. 

“You need to relax.” Koji called out. The boy twisted around, his stance melting away to reveal a young boy that looked no more than thirteen. Koji, however knew that the boy was far older. He couldn't have been more than four and a half feet, he appeared to be slightly taller than Koji, by half an inch or so. His hair was a shock of white, standing up in haphazard spikes from his head. His turquoise eyes were focused, wide and suspicious on Koji. 

“Sorry?” the boy said. His tone was respectful, the question the only thing that Koji could hear. The raven haired boy gave a small smile, before flash stepping toward the boy. One hand found its way onto the boy’s back and the other to his shoulder. 

“Tension. Right here” Koji pressed on the boy’s left shoulder. “and here” he said, pressing his back. The white haired boy shivered at the touch, before letting the bunched muscles relax, the tension seeping out of them. “There you go.” Koji smiled “That’s it. You need to keep your posture like this.” Koji pulled his hands away while he continued. “Your Zanpakto can’t work with you effectively if you don’t free yourself. You need to keep relaxed while you fight.” With that Koji walked away, looking for other students that needed correction. He did not, however notice the turquoise eyes that followed after him for several seconds.                     

The rest of the lesson passed quickly. The three hours progressing rapidly as Zaraki barked out new orders and new exercises for the groups to carry out. Stances and techniques improved; several students misstepped, causing injuries. Two had to be escorted to the hospital wing. The injuries were not serious, a few cuts in one case and a sprained wrist in the other. Koji, however, did not want to risk any further injuries being caused due to the pair’s preexisting injuries. If it had been up to Kempachi the pair would have been fought to fight until they could no longer stand. Koji wasn't about to allow that. 

The room cleared as the group was dismissed. Koji received a wave from Rukia and Renji as they made their way from the dojo. Koji, Kempachi and Ru thought they were below in the room; Kempachi beginning to formulate the words to challenge the younger Captain to another fight. However before he could get more than two words out Koji noticed the white haired boy from before approaching him. He had evidently not vacated the dojo with the other students. 

“Captain Koji” he said with a bow. His back straight and his head low. Koji raised a brow and gave a small nod in return to the boy. Several seconds passed. 

“What can I do for you?” Koji questioned as the silence stretched on. Any longer and the air of awkwardness would overwhelm them both. The pale face lit up, a blush spreading across cheeks. The white haired boy’s eyes flicked away, looking to the floor in his nervousness.

“Well Sir” the boy said, voice strong and purposeful even if it was a little quiet. “I was wondering if you would be willing to explain something to me.” Koji gave a nod. Bidding the boy to continue. He did, his voice more quite than before. “Well, you said to relax sir. But…I’m not sure how to” he whispered out. His face becoming a bright red. Koji gave a slight smile. The boy attempted to look tough but he was just as nervous as all the other academy students that had ever approached him. Koji decided to put the boy out of his misery. 

“It’s not as easy as all that.” Koji said gently. “Relaxation is a mindset. You may be able relax your muscles at a certain time but you can’t fight and be relaxed fully unless you know how to think.” The boy’s eyes widened. He looked confused, baffled even, but also interested. 

“Teach me” he pleaded. 

* * *

Six months passed in the blink of an eye. Koji had made a new friend. One closer than he thought that he would ever have. He may have a family: Kisuke, Shinji and maybe Yoruichi to a certain extent. However he didn't have anyone that truly understood him in the soul society. He had no-one that he could confide in. No-one that knew the true Koji. Most people only saw the strong and friendly Captain that had changed much of the way that the Soul Society trained their members. He had opened doors and helped people develop to their full potential. However they failed to notice the loneliness and the sadness that Koji kept bottled up nearly all the time.

Toshiro Hitsugaya had broken through the barriers that Koji had built to keep most people out. Ru could see through some of them, more than most. Yumi and Ikkaku were too distant, too busy to properly see beyond their goals. Rukia and Renji were too young and had too much studying to do to visit very ofter.The rules of the academy limited them. However, Rukia had also been spending an inordinate amount of time with Byakuya Kuchiki while Renji pined after the absence of his lost friend. He spent all his time attempting to find a way to win back Rukia. Toshiro had, however, done more than the others had in considerably less time. 

Koji had been giving the young man lessons for those past six months in that time the two had become very nearly inseparable. At first it had been only the lessons. Once a week for two hours when Koji had spare time, which was not very often. A month had passed and nothing seemed different. Koji’s life was as hectic as it had been for the past few years, with more and more work piling on tip of him. He ate little and slept even less. Therefore it was no surprise when one night he had collapsed from exhaustion in his office. 

The change, however, was that someone had been there to help him when he woke up. Toshiro had opened the door of Koji’s office, ready for his lesson, only to find the Captain of the seventh division collapsed in a pile of limbs on the floor. Toshiro had rushed toward the black haired boy in a panic. He shook the Captain awake, shouting his name with growing worry as the other did not stir. Koji had finally woken, reassuring the distressed academy student that he was fine and that he just needed some food and some rest.

Toshiro had promptly rushed from the room, only to return fifteen minutes later with a plate piled high with food. Koji had been lightly dozing, his head resting against his seat when the other walked in. Toshiro set the plate in front of the Captain, gently shaking his shoulders to wake him. After making sure that Koji was fed and then seeing him to bed, Toshiro left. Every visit that occurred after that, the white haired boy brought with him a variety of different food. Anything from cake to curry. He inquired after the Captain’s health, scolding him for working too hard and insisting that he sit and rest. Each lesson became longer, each meeting more social.

Two months after the lessons started Toshiro graduated from the academy. He had passed in a single year. Not as mind boggling as Koji’s own pass rate but he had still been amazing in his own right. To go to the academy with no formal training from anyone and to graduate in a year alone was fantastical. Toshiro was a prodigy. Koji had offered the young man a seat in his division. Toshiro had accepted. He had made a name for himself, being given the fifteenth seat within a division that most academy students wished to be in. Ever since Koji had taken over it seemed that everyone wanted to become a member of the seventh division, no matter their interests or motivation. Koji was by far the best person to help them get where they wanted to be. However very few were accepted. Koji interviewed and watched the fights of each of the applicants, which was most of the students, selecting only those he deemed worthy. That did not, however stop him from helping anyone that came to ask him. As well as not stopping him from running his numerous training sessions throughout the week. 

After Toshiro had accepted his position within the division he had become even more insistent that Koji remain healthy, constantly commenting on the fact that as a member of Koji’s division it was his responsibility to ensure that his captain didn't topple over and die. Many of the division members had noted this. Koji was almost always shadowed by the white haired shinigami. He seemed to be more of a Lieutenant than a fifteenth seat. It was now becoming rather uncommon for Captain Koji to be without his new sidekick. The young man was present at almost all of the Captain’s training sessions and seemed to be as busy as his black haired companion. Koji didn't think that he had been so happy or so close to someone in years. His white shadow was helping him to get his life back together. 

Koji, in return, spent much free time training the young man in his division. Their Bankai training was in full swing, with each passing day Toshiro becoming better and better. As well as his Kido spells. It seemed that even though Toshiro and Koji were opposites in Zanpaktos, they were not perturbed. The saying that opposites attract must really have been true. 


	12. Chapter 12

**AN:**  Hi everyone. Sorry that I haven't written in so long. My life has been a little hectic and I've not had a lot of time. However as I have not updated this story in a while I managed to bash out something. I know this chapter may seem a little different from the rest of the story, but I hope that you all enjoy it. Reviews are much appreciated.

* * *

Koji tiptoed into the room, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. He didn't quite feel comfortable in his gigai and yet he had had enough practice with the thing to be able to become accustomed to it. Koji’s feet remained silent on the wooden floor. He surveyed the room but found nothing. Koji decided that his target must be in the underground training grounds. He wondered what he could possibly be doing down there. Koji made his way across the room and gently opened the trap door. He climbed down, remaining as quiet as possible. Koji spread his senses to see who he could detect in the room. He could sense two presences, there was the telltale taste of green apple but another taste bombarded Koji’s senses, it was the taste of strawberries. Koji jumped from the ladder, his feet making no sound as they hit the floor. Keeping his spiritual pressure repressed he made his way towards the tingle of apple. As he looked around Koji thought, as he did every time he came into the training grounds, how amusing it was that these grounds were so similar to the ones in the soul society.

Koji saw the back of Kisuke’s head and lunged. He wrapped his arms around the ex-captain’s neck and his legs around the man’s waist. Due to his increased hight his legs encompassed Kisuke’s waist and Koji’s long hair fell into the man’s face. A loud laugh erupted from the boy’s mouth at his joy in seeing his old friend, his father figure. The two had not seen each other in around five years and Koji had missed the man. Kisuke rolled his shoulders forcing Koji to jump from the man’s back. Kisuke quickly turned around to pull Koji into a tight squeeze. Koji giggled and wrapped his arms back around the man, attempting to squeeze him harder than he was being squeezed. He now reached the man’s shoulder. A height that he was most proud of.

Ichigo Kurasaki stared dumbfounded at the sight that met his eyes. He had been having a very intense training session with Mr Hat-and-clogs when a person had appeared out of nowhere. The person had jumped onto Hat-and-clogs’ back before being shoved off to be embraced by the man. Ichigo couldn't see the other’s face, only the jet black hair that fell to down their back. Ichigo had never seen Hat-and-clogs act like this. He had always thought the man to be an unemotional shell who's only aim in life was to make him suffer. To see the man show emotion in any way was a shock.

“Kisuke it’s so good to see you” the person said in a friendly voice as he was released from the hug. As the person stepped away Ichigo got his first look at the person before him. Delicate features and a sparkling green eye could be seen, the other hidden by the jet black hair that fell gently around his face. The boy, as Ichigo assumed he was, wore Black skinny jeans, black combat boots and a baggy, bright green t-shirt that matched the visible eye. He looked to be around sixteen and seemed nothing more than a normal human being. Who was this guy and how did he get here? It seemed impossible for a normal human to get into such a place and for them to know Mr Hat-and-clogs. Ichigo was utterly confused. What the fuck was going on?

Koji, after his reunion with Kisuke, remembered that there was another presence in the room. His attention flickered towards the boy and he grinned at the bright orange hair that entered his vision. The boy did indeed seem interesting. The meat cleaver that was in his hand was a sight to see, for sure. It was the biggest Zanpakto that Koji had ever seen.

“Wow kid that’s one wild sword” Koji said with a chuckle. The orange haired boy’s eyes seemed to narrow in anger as Koji spoke.

“Kid!” he exclaimed. “Who are you calling kid? You look the same age as me.” Ichigo growled out. Koji grinned in response, not at all phased by the boy before him. He was sure that if the boy knew who he was then he would be scared shitless. Koji turned his attention to Kisuke.

“Yoruichi didn't tell me that he was such a firecracker.” Koji said, the humour obvious in his voice. Kisuke raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “So, have I caught you at a bad time or can we go and see Shinji.” Koji said hesitantly. He didn't want to cause his friend any trouble.

“Yes, we have time. We were just finishing up here anyway.” Kisuke said with a smile. He then turned his attention towards Ichigo. “Go and have a rest Ichigo, you need it. Meet back here with your friends in a few hours” with that Kisuke took Koji’s hand in his and the pair walked towards the exit.

Ichigo watched them go. He still hadn't learned the name of the boy but it seemed that he had learned the name of Mr Hat-and-clogs. The boy had called him Kisuke, so he supposed that must be his name. Ichigo wondered if he dare call the man that. He may very well end up at the end of the man’s sword. Benehime was not a force to be trifled with.

* * *

In an office several hundred miles away an old man stared in shock as another bright green flash filled his office. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Another flash of green came and went without the man blinking, his shock being to great. Albus Dumbledore thought that his eyes may pop out of their sockets as the light flashed again. It was impossible! The light before his signified that Harry Potter was using magic but that was utterly impossible, wasn't it? Harry Potter had been dead for just under a year so how was the light flashing? Dumbledore checked the device before him for the third time to see if there was a malfunction but found that there was none. It was ridiculous. Dumbledore had no idea what he was going to do.

Harry Potter had been killed, he was dead, Dumbledore was sure of it. He'd seen the body. It would not be good if the boy was alive. Not good at all. The official story was that Harry had been killed by the Dark Lord before, after fighting to his very last breath. The brave and courageous Albus Dumbledore had then managed swoop in and save the day, conquering another Dark Lord. Dumbledore had then explained to his adoring fans how he had faked his death in an effort to help keep the Dark Lord at bay without the evil wizard suspecting him to be involved. It had all played out nicely as Dumbledore had yet again become respected and Harry had become a hero in his death. He had even been awarded an order of Merlin first class after his death. However the story that Dumbledore had spun may not have quite played out in the way that Dumbledore had explained it. If the boy were to come back and explain his side of the story to the Wizarding World then the results would be abominable. It would destroy everything that Dumbledore had worked so hard to achieve. He needed to find Potter and he needed to find him quickly.

Albus Dumbledore rose from his seat and pulled his wand from his pocket. The elder wand had shattered when he had reclaimed it from Harry. Dumbledore had also been unable to find either the invisibility cloak or the resurrection stone in the places that he had left them. The wand he therefore drew was his old wand of Apple wood and Dragon Heartstring core. The wand was less powerful then his first and yet he was still as an unstoppable with this than with the elder wand. To further test whether Harry Potter was present in the world and preforming magic he lay the wand in his palm. He quickly cast a point-me charm. The wand turned quickly several times before slowing to a stop telling Dumbledore that the boy was indeed here. The old man paled at the realisation. However suddenly the wand dropped and clattered to the floor. The green flashing light in the room vanished and Dumbledore was left in a further state of confusion than before. The boy’s presence had simply vanished. That was even more insane than it having appeared in the first place. Just what in Merlin’s name was going on?

* * *

Koji held to Kisuke’s hand tightly as the pair walked toward the hollow hide out. Koji swung the hands between them and hummed softly to himself, a smile spreading wider and wider across his face with each step that he took.

“How have you been little one?” Kisuke questioned, a smile on his face.

“Well” Koji’s smile slipped slightly as he looked up to the man that had become his father. “I’ve missed you.” he said gently, a solomon look in his eyes.

“I missed you too Koji” Kisuke soothed, pulling Koji into his arms once more. Several strange looks were given to them by passers by, however they ignored them all. Kisuke released the young man from the hug, pondering over how quickly the time had passed. It seemed like only a week ago that he had found the young boy. It seemed like days since they had been in the soul society together, as a family. However it had been over a hundred years since he had met the small boy, turned young man that stood beside him.

“But what have you been up to Koji? How are your friends?” Kisuke steered, attempting to move the conversation to a more favourable one. He wanted to know that his little boy was okay.

“Good” Koji said, regaining some of his lost smile. “Toshiro finally managed to mature his bankai. Although he grew a foot in a day; he’s taller than me now.” Koji pouted. His height had always been an issue for him. He grew slowly as all of the members of the soul society did. Ageing slowed down much more than it did in the world of the living. However Koji was still small compared to these around him. It seemed that the only person that he was still taller than was Ru.

“Tatsuo did tell me that I would get taller though. He says that as my powers grow, then I will as well.” Koji smiled. “I wish you could see him now though. I swear that he grows as much as I do. He’s always going to be taller than me.” The pout was deeper this time. It caused Kisuke to laugh.

The chatter continued, Koji telling Kisuke of all that had happened in the past five year. They reached the hideout and after a heart felt greeting to Shinji the conversation continued further. Koji spoke of how Yumi and Ikkaku had moved up the ranks of the soul society. Of how he had become closer to Toshiro and of Ru’s antics.

However as time ticked by the discussion became more difficult. Koji’s life was not all sunshine and daisies. Aizen had been gaining power and there was nothing that the young Captain could do about it. No one would ever believe Koji. No one would trust his word against that of a far more experienced and respected Captain. Koji did not have the allies to be in such a situation.

There was Toshiro, the Captain of the tenth, a firm friend, an ally that would believe whatever Koji told him as truth. Just as Koji himself would believe the fellow Captain. Koji had also developed a tentative friendship with Byakuya Kuchiki, Captain of the sixth division. The friendship was, however, one of convenience rather than of camaraderie. Koji wished to keep up his close connections to Rukia and Renji both of whom were now closely intertwined with the Kuchiki lord. Rukia was fully adopted into the Kuchiki line, now living in the manor and engaging in the social events required of one of her status. However the relationship between herself and her adopted brother were still strained. The Captain unwilling to engage in many of the activities necessary for the two to become closer. Fear was of course the leading factor in this reluctance.

Renji had blossomed into his own man. He now towered above Koji and had found his own place in the world of the soul society as a Lieutenant of the seventh division. Koji was proud of what the young man had achieved. However his relationship with Rukia was not what it had once been. It had become strained to say the least. Renji had never really got over the deceit that he judged Rukia to have committed in not telling him that she was to be adopted by the Kuchiki family. However that did not stop Koji from forcing the twos presence upon each other. Lives in the soul society were long and he knew that the two would eventually realise that both were only doing as they deemed the right thing.

However despite the tentative friendship that Koji had formed with Lord Kuchiki he knew that the man held his own morals and values far higher than he did for any other members of the soul society. Koji knew that if he were to stand against a Captain without sufficient evidence the Captain would disregard him entirely. Shunsui and Jushiro were additional allies that Koji may have. However the two were far too concerned with their own appearance to the soul society and with pleasing their mentor. Therefore unless push came to shove, unless they had no other option, their loyalties would lie with no one but themselves. Koji therefore seemingly had many possible allies. However the majority of them were unlikely to stand by him unless given any other options. However Aizen himself had far more option, with two captains firmly under his wing and the element of surprise. 

* * *

Koji reluctantly returned to the soul society three hours later knowing that the shit show that would ensue over the next few days would make him want to drown himself and stick hot pins in his eyeballs. He predicted that when the few days of horror had passed that either he would need to run into exile as Kisuke and Shinji had done. Or he would have a much firmer footing within the soul society. As he stepped through the portal he let his hands run up his face in his frustration. Why were things never simple? Why did people always need to have ulterior motives or a hidden agenda? Life would be so much simpler if when playing poker everyone’s cards were simply placed on the table. But Koji knew that that was not the way that the game worked.

* * *

Koji could feel the strawberry. His presence not able to escape the notorious detection skills of the seventh division. The clever boy had taken a route through the sewers. He wondered which one of the other two presences were the one to suggest it. The boy could not have possibly know where they were by himself. Koji had been following the group for around an hour, waiting for the right moment to reveal himself. The moment came as the trio decided to rest. Koji stood around the corner, listening to their conversation for a few minutes before he stepped into view.

The first of the three to spot him was the young fourth division member, Hanataro. Koji had not had a proper conversation with Hanatoro since their days at the academy together. Koji found himself realising how little the boy had changed in that time. Other than the uniform he had sustained his entire attitude and appearance for the past hundred years. As soon as Hanataro saw Koji standing before him he rocketed up from his seated position. His eyes became wide as he released just who it was that was standing before him. Koji only looked at the young man with a small smile.

“S-s-s-sir…” the boy managed to stutter out. Koji gave a grin to the boy before him. The boy was far more jumpy then he remembered, that was for sure. The other two occupants of the space looked up at Koji and one set of eyes filled with recognition. As seemed to be his habit the orange haired boy that went by the name of Ichigo spoke without thinking.

“It’s you” the boy exclaimed. “What the hell are you doing here!” the orange haired young man said, anger lacing his tone. Both of the other occupants of the room looked at Ichigo in shock. Hanataro looked as though he was about to pass out at the tone that Ichigo was taking with.The other member of the trio was someone that Koji did not recognised. Although the man looked like he might punch the orange haired boy if he didn't shut up.

“I-Ichigo stop.” Hanataro said in a scared tone. “You cant talk to him like that, he’s…he’s…”

“I don’t care what he is.” Ichigo proclaimed. His hand reached behind his back and reached for the Zanpakto that was strapped there. “If he's a threat then I’ll fight him and I’ll win” the boy said with determination. Koji raised his hands attempting to placate the boy and spoke with an amused smile on his face.

“Peace Ichigo Kurasaki, I mean you no harm. I know what you're trying to do and I will support you in anyway that I can.” Koji said with a small smile, leaving the trio looking at him in shock. He wanted to laugh at the dumbfounded looks. The unknown man seemed the first to snap out of his shock as he pointed his finger, accusingly, towards Koji.

“Why the hell would the Captain of the seventh division want to help us?” the man said in outrage. “You’re trying to trick us! Theres no way you would want to help us.”

“Don’t be so quick to judge.” Koji said thoughtfully. A sad smile was climbing its way onto his face. “A very good friend of mine told me of your mission. I do not want Rukia to die. I plan to save her” Koji’s voice was firm and full of determination as he spoke. He meant every word that he was saying.

“How do we know that you're telling the truth?” the man continued angrily “Who is this friend that you're telling us about?” he demanded.

“Well, I’m sure that you won’t have heard of him. He has not been in the soul society for a long time but I suppose telling you his name can’t hurt. He’s called Kisuke Urahara.” Koji said. Most of the conversation had been to himself. He was not expecting the small spark of recognition that he saw in the eyes of the man before him. It seemed that he knew of Kisuke. That was unusual.

“How do you know that man? You call him a friend but he has been declared a traitor.” The man said with suspicion in his eyes.

“It’s merely the trust that we built over time. Friendship is not easily broken even when others think badly of said friend. Of course that means one has to be discrete.” Koji said with a wink at the man. He knew the man was testing him and Koji knew just how to pass. A smile broke onto the man’s face as all pretence of hostility seemed to be dropped. He took a hand out and Koji took it as the two shook.

“The name’s Ganju Shiba. A pleasure to meet you” the man said with a grin. “It seems we’ll be working together then.” Koji had to hold back a gasp as the name passed through the man’s lips. He could, however, not stop the sadness that filled his eyes. Ganju seemed to notice and looked at Koji in curiosity.

“I’m so sorry for your loss.” Koji said solemnly. “I knew your brother well and I know that his death was hard on all of us.” Koji said gently. No one had been prepared for Kaien’s death and he knew that it had hit the family the hardest. He had heard of their seclusion from the rest of the soul society and he could not blame them. To loose a family member was hard, no matter what the circumstances. Especially when those circumstances had been less than pure. Aizen’s suspected involvement was something that Koji was not about to forget. It was simply being added to his evidence against the other Captain.

The man before him quickly brushed off the comment, seemingly unhappy at being reminded of the tragedy that he had had to live through. He gave only a gruff grunt of acknowledgement at the consideration the captain was giving him. Hanataro however managed to rescue the pair from the awkward situation.

“We…we should probably go Captain” the boy said nervously. “They will find us if we don't keep moving.” The boy shuffled, pulling at his sleeves and the sash that lay across his front as he addressed the captain.

Koji gave a grin, slapping the boy on the back “You're right” he smiled. He then spoke in a slightly quite voice, so that only the young man could hear him. “But have a little more confidence Hanataro. You’ve got some pretty great ideas if you speak up.” he said with a small, sincere smile.

“Well then Hanataro” Koji called out loudly once more. “Lead the way”

The next hour consisted of a rather unpleasant walk, the smells being less than appealing as the four of them walked along the passages that Hanataro had seemingly memorised. Koji was more impressed with the boy as with each step his confidence and conviction seemed to grow. After hearing the story of the boy and Rukia he, however, saw why it was that the young man wanted to help Rukia. It seemed as valid reason as any and the sparkle in the fourth division member’s eyes, as he talked of Rukia, solidified the respect that Koji felt for this more self-affirming Hanataro that seemed to be blossoming before him.

Soon enough the end of the path was reached. A trap door was opened and the four of them poured out into the fog. Koji quickly detecting the presence of another, one that he recognised, quickly hid himself from both detection and view. Renji was strong and Koji would intervene if necessary but as of the current moment he would rather go unseen but the Lieutenant. From his hidden place Koji watched the fight play out.

He decided that the two of them spoke far too much. Fights, in his mind, were far better spent in silence. Although he supposed that the hatred that the two seemingly held for one another was the reason for the sadistic speeches that the pair baited each other with. As the battle progressed Ichigo seemed to be getting more and more worn down. Each blow forced painful grunts from his lungs. Renji’s sword cut through the boy’s shoulder and Ichigo was forced to the floor with a pain filled gasp. However there was a sparkle in the boy’s eyes. One that promised pain to his opponent. One that promised victory. It seemed that the fight was not quite over yet.

Koji couldn't repress the grin as the boy stood up from the position that he had fallen. The man’s positioning echoed that of Kisuke’s. The form obvious to any of those that had spent even the shortest of time being trained by the ex-captain. Harry supposed that he should be glad that only Renji was present. Otherwise the game would be up before it had even started. However the smile soon dropped as he saw the damage done to Renji and the man’s Zanpakto.

He stopped himself from diving forward as he heard the words that poured from Renji’s mouth. The man was worth more than he thought. He was worth so much more. He was not a stray dog, he was not without a family. He could never have stopped what had happened to Rukia, the Kuchiki family having far too much power for a young academy student to be able to do anything. Koji couldn't hold himself back anymore. He leapt forward and wrapped his arms around the shoulders of the kneeling form of his broken friend.

“Will you save her?” Renji demanded, his voice harsh and filled with emotion.

“We will save her Renji” Koji hummed as he ran a hand through the bright red locks. The young man breathed in, in his surprise as he felt the reassuring touch and the gentle words.

“K-Koji” Renji stuttered out as his body slumped back into the Captain’s embrace. Koji gently lay the young man down, careful not to jolt his injuries as he knelt next to the man that he had know for so long. It seemed that he had never really known how conflicted the red-head had become. However it seemed that Renji hadn’t known either.

“It’s going to be alright Renji. We’re going to save her” Koji said with a gentle smile. “Did you ever think that I would allow anything else?” Koji pushed the bright hair back from Renji’s face as he soothed the young man. “Now let me heal a few of these for you. We don't want you to be in pain.”

Koji lifter his hands, bright green light formed in a ball which was quickly pushed toward the man below him. Renji observed intently as the light was absorbed into his body. The large cut that had recently been obtained healed rapidly, leaving only a light pink blush of skin where it had once been. However Koji knew the man before him too well. If given the opportunity he would follow the group, in an attempt to save Rukia. However the man’s energy was drained. There was no way he could allow the red-head to follow.

“We’ll save her Renji. You need to just stay here and recover.” As Koji spoke he gathered a small amount of energy in the tips of his fingers, bringing his hand up to Renji’s temple. “You’ll be found soon enough” Koji continued. “In the meantime I need you to sleep.” With his final word a small flash of yellow met Renji’s temple. The man’s head jolted slightly, his eyes slamming shut, as he was thrust into unconsciousness.


End file.
